Pokémon: Dreams of a Master - Kanto Arc
by DeGraphics Literature
Summary: What if Ash and Serena stayed in contact with each other after she left summer camp and she decided to come to Kanto when they both start their journey? Find out in this retelling of the Pokémon Anime. Amourshipping. Aura Ash and slightly smarter Ash. Aging Characters.
1. Pallet Town Summer Camp

Chapter 1 - Pallet Town Summer Camp

 **Hello, and welcome to my retelling of the Pokémon anime. I know it's not the most original idea out there but I just felt like doing this. I'm going to be using the information from Pocket Monsters: The Secrets of the Pokémon Anime book for Ash's backstory and various scenario's. This includes Ash's Birthday which, according to calculations, is May 22nd. I will create birthday dates for the other characters as well. I will go into more details at the end of the chapter. So let's get started.**

 **I do not own Pokémon!**

* * *

It was a beautiful day as the sun shone brightly over the small village of Pallet Town it the Kanto Region.

In a small restaurant called the Pallet House, a young, six-year-old boy with black hair and brown eyes was enjoying some delicious soup that his mother had made with an old man in his late fifties with grey hair and wearing a lab coat sitting across from him. The boy was named Ash Ketchum and the man he was sitting with is none other than the world renowned Professor Samuel Oak. The professor was just telling the boy about a summer camp he was hosting in a few days. At this summer camp, children would be able to interact and learn more about some of the Pokémon that inhabit this world.

"That's sounds like fun," said Ash. "Can I go Mom, please?"

He turned to the service window where a young woman in her mid-twenties with brown hair tied into a ponytail was standing. This was Delia Ketchum, Ash's mother and owner of the restaurant.

"Sure you can sweety," said Delia. "I'm sure you'll have a lot of fun."

Ash cheered for joy as he finished his meal and walked out the building with a smile on his face. He couldn't wait the the summer camp to start so he could meet all the different Pokémon and play with them. He just hoped that none of the bullies he knew from school were going to be there.

Yes, Ash used to bullied. He didn't know why, but he would always tell the teacher or the bullies father to get them to stop. The latter option didn't usually work as the fathers would just ignore him and their kids. It wasn't until Delia got the fathers of all the bullies father's together at her restaurant and scolded them. He didn't know what she said, but whatever it was got the bullies to stop. That doesn't mean Ash is friends with them though.

He knew for sure that Professor Oak's grandson, Gary, was going to be there, as well as his twin sister, Daisy. Ash didn't see them very much because they we went to a school in a different town and they weren't exactly the best of friends. Gary was very arrogant and had the ego the size of a Snorlax since he was related to the Oak family; his great great grandfather, Pallet Oak was the one who gave Pallet Town it's name, and his great uncle was the Mayor. Daisy was much nicer and didn't have much of an ego, but she still didn't interact with him much because Gary kept dragging her away before she got a chance.

Aside from those two, he didn't know if anyone else would be there. He did hope he could make at least one friend.

* * *

The day of the summer camp had finally arrived and just as Ash predicted, the Oak twins were there. Gary had brown, spiky hair and brown eyes and was wearing black shorts and a light green polo shirt, his sister Daisy also had brown eyes, but her hair was long and a lighter shade of brown and was held back by a green headband and was wearing a green sundress. He saw a few of his old bullies and some faces he didn't recognize. No one seemed to be making any effort to make friends so Ash was just sitting by himself, making him feel very lonely, and he hated being alone.

The first activity the campers had was a Pokémon Scavenger Hunt, where there were different Pokémon scattered across the ranch and the campers had to bring them back to the lab. There were four Pokémon on the list:

Oddish x6 - 2 points

Poliwag x4 - 3 points

Bellsprout x2 - 4 points

Pichu x1 - 5 points

Froakie x1 - 6 points

Ash was a bit puzzled by the last entry so he raised his hand and asked, "Professor, what's a Froakie?"

"Ah yes, Froakie is one of the starter Pokémon from the Kalos region," said the Pokémon Professor. "Professor Sycamore thought it would be a great experience for you all to meet Pokémon outside of Kanto, so he sent Froakie. Here's what he looks like."

The Professor showed all the campers a picture of a light blue frog with yellow eyes and a collar that seemed to be made of foam bubbles.

Gary raised his hand and asked, "Can we team up?"

"That is an option yes," the older Oak replied. "The scavenger hunt ends in two hours. Begin."

"Come on Daisy, let's go." Gary immediately grabbed Daisies hand and took off along with everyone else, each kid going in a different direction. Leaving Ash without a partner.

Ash sighed as he went off to look for one of the Pokémon on the list. He hated being alone, absolutely hated it. He was an only child living with his single mother. His father… well, he didn't really want to talk about him. He didn't have any friends thanks to all the bullying he went through. He just wished he could have just one friend.

Ashe had traveled near the forest at the edge of the ranch when he spotted one of the Pokémon on the list, a Poliwag. The Poliwag seemed to have noticed Ash as well and took off into the forest. Not wanting to lose it, Ash followed the Tadpole Pokémon into the forest.

* * *

In an area of the forest not too far from where Ash was, a young girl with honey-blonde hair, blue eyes and wearing a pink sun dress and straw hat was wandering around, not aware of where she was at all. She was trying to follow another group of kids. She didn't know them, she just hoped they would at least let her tag along. Once she had entered the forest, she had lost sight of them. Now she was lost and frightened.

The girl in the straw hat continuously cried out for them, hoping one of them would answer. When suddenly, she was startled by something rustling in the bushes. She tried to turn and run be she quickly tripped and fell, feeling her knee hit the ground, she looked back as whatever was in the bushes was coming closer. The source of the noise emerged, revealing a Poliwag, the one she and the other campers were supposed to look for. Though it was pretty harmless, the young girl was still so frightened, she didn't move a muscle. The Tadpole gave one look at her and then proceeded to run off.

The young girl started to cry. She didn't even want to go to this stupid camp. Her mom said it would be "a good opportunity to make new friends," and "see the world beyond Vanville Town." She was happy in Vanville Town, it's where her home was, it's where her bed was, it's where she felt safe. Here, she lost, hurt, frightened, and alone. She wanted her mommy to hurry up and find her so she could just go home.

Suddenly, the young girl heard some more rustling in the bushes. She was so frightened and scared she closed her eyes and didn't move, hoping whatever Pokémon was there didn't notice her.

"Poliwag," said a voice. The girl was confused but did not open her eyes. The voice didn't sound like it belonged to a Pokémon.

"Hey are you alright?" The voice said again. Knowing it was human, the girl opened her eyes to see a boy around her age with brown eyes and messy, black hair in front of her.

"Hi, my name's Ash," said the boy, but the girl was still to frightened to give her own name.

"Hey, what's wrong," the boy asked. She wasn't sure if she could trust this boy, but the girl figured that it was better than being here all along.

"I-I hurt my knee," she said, looking at her injured leg.

Ash looked down at the injured knee and kneeled down to get a closer look.

"Don't worry," he said as he pulled out blue handkerchief from his pocket. "This will make it better."

He then proceeded to tie the small piece of cloth around her injured knee. The girl was surprised at the generosity this boy was showing. She tried to get up but her knee, still hurt.

"It's a good luck charm," said the raven haired boy. "Pain, pain, go away!"

It was a silly little chant in the girl's mind but for some reason it made feel a bit better. She tried getting up again but she still felt the pain in her leg.

"It's no use, I can't stand up," the girl whinned.

Ash seemed to feel a little sad. He was sure that would have at least helped her a little. He then remembered a quote from one of his favorite books so he got up and said, "Don't give up until it's over, okay."

He then extended his hand out for the girl to grab. She was a little hesitant, but she decided to place her trust in this boy and grabbed his hand. Before she knew it, Ash had pulled her up and she was suddenly pressed against him. She then realised that she was standing up and her knee didn't hurt as much. She stepped back a bit to see the raven haired boy's smiling face.

"See, you stood," Ash said as his smile grew.

"Come on, let's go," he said as he kept his grip on the straw hat girl's hand as he helped guide her out of the forest, which she seemed to do unconsciously. She wasn't sure why, maybe it was because he helped her, maybe it was because he was nice to her, maybe because of what he said, but she had this feeling that he could trust this boy.

"By the way, I never got your name," said Ash, snapping the girl from her thoughts.

"Oh, um, Serena," said the girl. "Serena Yvonne."

"Serena, huh? That's a really pretty name." Serena's cheeks seemed to get warmer when he said that.

As they were reaching the edge of the forest, Serena noticed something blue up in the branches.

"Hey Ash," said Serena, trying to get the boys attention. "There's something in the trees."

Ash looked up and saw what Serena was talking about. Sitting there in the branches was a small, light blue frog, Froakie.

"Hey, it's Froakie," Ash said.

The Bubble Frog Pokémon seemed to here the boy. Upon knowing it had been discovered, it got up and got ready for a fight. He was just trying a nice place train and not be bothered by these kids. He doesn't even know why Professor Sycamore sent him here in the first place.

"Are you going to take try and take it back to the lab," Serena asked.

Froakie tensed up even more. If these children were going to try and catch it, he was definitely not going to make it easy for them.

"No, we need to get back to lab quick so the Professor can look at your leg," said Ash.

This caught the blue frog off-guard. They weren't trying to capture it? It then looked down at the girl's leg and saw that it was wrapped in a blue cloth.

"Sorry Froakie," said Ash. "But once Serena's feeling better, we're gonna come back for you."

"We are?"

"Sure we are," said Ash. "See you Froakie."

Froakie watched as the two human children left the forest. That boy put the girls safety before this silly scavenger hunt. He had run into a few of the other campers and they all tried to catch him before he gave them the slip, but this boy just ignored him to help his friend. Froakie then thought it might be good to watch this boy.

* * *

Ash and Serena came back to the lab and immediately saw Professor Oak standing outside.

"Ah, greetings you two," said the Professor.

"Hey Professor," Ash said. "I know we didn't bring back any Pokémon, but Serena hurt her leg, so I brought her back her so you could look at it.

The professor knelt down and looked at Serena's knee.

"I see, I will definitely have one of my staff members look at it," said Professor Oak. "But I wouldn't say you didn't bring back any Pokémon."

Ash and Serena were a bit confused by what the professor had said. They turned around to see that Froakie sitting right behind them.

"Did you follow us Froakie?" Ash asked the Kalos Starter. Froakie nodded in response.

"Well then, 5 points each to Ash and Serena," Professor Oak said.

Ash and Serena turned to each other a gave a small smile. They didn't plan on it, but they just got the most points that they could get.

"Hey Professor," a loud voice. Everyone turned to see a girl with brown hair and a blue sundress running towards them holding an Oddish above her head.

"Professor look. I got an Oddish," said the girl. She then turned to Ash and Serena and saw that Froakie was next to them.

"Ah man, you guys got the Kalos Pokémon! So lucky."

"Anywho," said the professor turning back to Serena. "Let's get that leg looked at."

* * *

Inside the lab, Ash and the new girl were patiently waiting with Froakie as one of Professor Oak's assistants properly treated Serena's leg.

"Alright, we're all done," said the assistant. "Just take it easy for a few hours and your knee will be much better."

"Thank you," said Serena as she went to join Ash and the brown haired girl.

"All set," said Ash.

Serena gave a happy nod in response.

"Hey do you guys mind if I join you," the other girl asked. "I mean, I'm sure this will be a lot easier with more people. I'm Leaf by the way."

Both kids were a bit surprised by her request, but Ash simply smiled and said, "Sure, I'm Ash. This is Serena."

"Ash? That name sounds familiar," Leaf mumbled. "Hey, aren't you that kid who always got bullied in elementary school?"

"Yeah," Ash said in sadness, remembering the earlier days of elementary school.

"Oh, sorry, I shouldn't have brought it up," Leaf apologized.

"No, it's okay," said Ash. "It's all in the past now."

"There you are Little Ash," a new voice called.

Ash and the others turned to see Gary and Daisy standing at the doorway with A Pichu under his arm looking rather uncomfortable.

"Hey there Gary," said Ash, obviously annoyed the young Oak boy's presence.

"I see you got Froakie here, not that it matters," Gary gloated in a snarky tone. "Me and Daisy have already brought back 2 Poliwags and 3 Oddish, and now that we have this Pichu, that means we have the most points."

Gary heald the Pichu above his head as he gave a mocking laugh. The Pichu seemed to have enough of this boy's grip on him and decided to teach him a lesson. Pichu's tiny, pink cheeks began to spark before letting out a small Thunder Shock attack that gave Gary a big shock. After receiving the attack, Gary fell to the floor, allowing Pichu to escape his grasp and run off to another part of the lab.

"Pichu wait," Daisy called out, hoping to apologize to the small electric type. Pichu turned back to Daisy only briefly before continuing to run off somewhere else. Disappointed that she couldn't apologize to Pichu, she turned to face Ash, Serena, and Leaf.

"I'm very sorry for my brother's behavior Ash," she said, giving a small bow.

"It's okay, Daisy," said Ash. "I think I'm used to it at this point."

"Why do you always hang out with him anyway," Leaf asked.

"Well he's my brother, why else would I be," said Daisy.

"I-it just seems like you don't like being with him," Serena said nervously.

"Oh, I do," said Daisy. "It's just that I want to make more friends. Gary doesn't really let me do that though."

"Let me guess, he says something like, 'I don't want my sister being friends with anyone who isn't as great as me,'" said Ash, trying to mimic Gary's voice. This earned a chuckle from the girls, Daisy as well.

"Something like that, yes," Daisy said, still chuckling.

"Hey, since your brother will need some time to recover, want to join us," Leaf asked. "It will be a big blow to Gary's ego."

"If it's okay with the rest of you," said Daisy.

"It's fine with me," said Ash.

"I wouldn't mind," said Serena.

"Alright, now that that's out of the way, let's get to it!"

* * *

The four of them had brought back two Oddish since their team up. They were unable to catch more since Ash suggested that they take it slow so Serena's knee could still heal. A choice she would be forever grateful for.

By the end of day, Daisy had obtained the most points with Gary coming in second place. Ash and Serena were falling a bit behind and Leaf being right behind them.

"Ah man, I was really looking forward to getting more Pokémon than that," said Leaf.

"Well we had to make sure we weren't pushing Serena too hard," said Ash.

"Oh I'll make up for it," Leaf stated confidently. "When I become a trainer, I'm going to catch every Pokémon in the world!"

"That's a very interesting dream Leaf," said Daisy.

"I really want to rub it Gary's face when he sees I've caught more Pokémon than him," Leaf said. "What about you guys, what do you want to do when you're trainers?"

"I'm not sure yet," said Serena. "I know I don't want to do Rhyhorn Racing like my mom, but I do think there's something else out there for me."

"Well I think I want to be a researcher like my grandfather," said Leaf. "Being a trainer will give me a more in-depth analysis on human and pokémon relationships. I might be able to get some data grandpa didn't get when he was a trainer."

"Well I know what I want to be," said Ash. "I'm going to become a Pokémon Master."

"Pokémon Master," the girls asked curiously. "How are you going to do that?"

"Well I… uh… I'm not exactly sure," Ash admitted embarrassingly. "But I the first thing I'm going to do is win the Pokémon League. I'll figure out the rest from there."

"Well, I'm sure you'll do great Ash," said Daisy. Leaf and Serena gave Ash equal praise when they were interrupted by a croaking sound. The group turned to see Froakie sitting behind them.

"Oh yeah, I forgot that he was following us," said Leaf.

It was true, ever since the group teamed up, Froakie had been following them non-stop. They weren't sure why though. What they did notice that it's eyes were always focussed on Ash.

"I think one of you might have caught Froakie's interest," came a new voice.

The four children turned once again to find Professor Oak.

"Professor Sycamore told me that this particular Froakie has had an issue with trainers in the past," the professor explained. "He would end up finding them unworthy af them being their trainer and came right back to Sycamore's lab. The trainer would then call him and say they didn't want Froakie anymore. I think this little fella might see one of you as it's next trainer in the future."

"One of us," Daisy asked.

"Well it's been following me and Ash since we ran into it in the forest," Serena said,

"Yeah, and he's mostly been watching Ash," Leaf added.

The same thought came to everyone's mind, Froakie wanted Ash to be his trainer when he was old enough. There was no other reason for Froakie to follow Ash.

Ash then went up to Froakie and asked, "Is it true, do you really want you to be my Pokémon when I become a trainer?"

Froakie responded with an nod and a small croak.

"Alright then, I'll tell Professor Sycamore the news and get Froakie's Pokéball," said Professor Oak. "You'll still need to get an official starter the April after you turn ten like the everyone else though."

"That's alright Professor," said Ash. "I'm sure me and Froakie will get along great."

"Man, you sure are lucky Ash," said Leaf. "You get to have a Pokémon before the rest of us."

"Gary won't be happy when he hears this," Daisy thought out loud.

Ash didn't pay much mind to Daisy and Leaf's comments, he was just focussed on Froakie and thinking about the amazing adventures they'll have.

"Froakie," said Ash. "I'm sure we're going to be great friends."

* * *

 **And that is Chapter 1! Now let me answer a few questions you guys may be having right now. First, why did I make Gary and Daisy twins? Well, with Serena being in Kalos when Ash, Gary, and Leaf pick their starters, and because I don't want to go through all the trouble of making an OC, I wanted there to be some trainer to pick Charmander. Also I think this can create some very interesting scenarios. Second, why did I have Ash and Froakie meet in summer camp, again, I thought it would make things more interesting. I was originally going to have Serena give Froakie to Ash on his eleventh birthday as a gift, but that didn't seem as interesting. Third, is that Pichu Gary caught Ash's Pikachu? You'll see. Fourth, will Ash have a Harem? NO! Ash will only have one girlfriend at a time.**

 **If you have any other questions I didn't cover, please ask one in a review and I will answer the ones I think should be openly shared so they aren't asked again. Please do not ask anything that could be considered spoilers. So until next time.**


	2. Ash's Birthday Promise

Chapter 2 - Ash's Birthday Promise

 **Welcome back my friends. I'm glad that you have come back for more. Now, you're probably wondering why I'm making a birthday chapter so soon, well, you'll just have to read the chapter to find out. Here is a list of character's birthday's so far:**

 **Ash Ketchum - May 22**

 **Serena Yvonne - February 25**

 **Misty Waterflower - May 7**

 **Brock Harrison - March 15**

 **Delia Ketchum - November 14**

 **Leaf Green - June 3**

 **Gary Oak - April 27**

 **Daisy Oak - April 27**

 **I do not own Pokémon!**

* * *

"Happy Birthday, Ash!"

Yes it is now Ash's birthday, his tenth birthday to be exact. He will be able to start his Pokémon Journey in the following April, but since his birthday is in May, he would have to wait a little longer.

A lot has changed since the summer camp. Ash and Froakie had already become really close friends, they were even like brothers. Froakie had kept honing his battling skills but hasn't evolved yet, he did trust Ash, but he still wasn't ready to command a fully evolved Pokémon yet. He had also started hanging out with Leaf and Daisy more often, which Gary was not happy about, but Daisy didn't care. He couldn't spend as much time with Serena since she went right back to Kalos once the camp was over. She still kept in touch with Ash, Leaf, and Daisy and the video called each other every chance they could.

Delia couldn't be more happy for her son, he had made so many friends, but she was a little nervous that they were all girls, with the exception of Froakie of coarse. She just she didn't have to worry about grandchildren any time soon.

Ash himself has changed as well, but only by a little. He was taller obviously, but he had grown a little bit of muscle for someone his age. He was now wearing light jeans and a black T-shirt with a blue, short sleeved jacket that was fully open on top.

Leaf and Daisy had changed as well. Both girls were already developing nice figures and had also grown taller. Leaf now wore a light blue tank top with a red mini skirt, white sneakers, and wore a white sun cap with a red rim and pokéball logo. Daisy now wore a short sleeved, green and white hoodie with a green miniskirt and green shoes.

"Here you go Ash," said Leaf, handing his a small package wrapped in green wrapping paper.

"Thank you Leaf," said Ash, taking the present.

He quickly unwrapped it to find a small device with a large screen that was encased in red.

"It's called a Holo Caster," Leaf explained. "It's like a cell phone that gives small holographic projections. I think I heard Serena telling me she got one last Christmas."

"That's great," said Ash. "Did she give you her number?"

"Yep, here," said Leaf, handing him a small slip of paper. She new full well that between the three of them, Serena talked with Ash the most. She wasn't sure what they talk about, but she didn't care. Leaf just knew Ash would want to surprise Serena later.

"Here's my gift Ash," said Daisy, handing him a blue box tied with a yellow ribbon.

Ash thanked her as well before removing the ribbon and opening the box. Inside, there was a large book that said "Cooking for Dummies." Ash gave Daisy a flat look as everyone in the room snickered at the gift, including Froakie.

"I figured you might need it on your journey," said Daisy as she tried to hold back her laughter. "We don't want you dying of food poisoning on your journey."

"Real funny guys," said Ash, clearly unamused. Sure he wasn't a good cook, but he didn't think his food was _that_ bad, was it?

"Alright, alright, that's enough," said Delia, trying to hold in her laughter as well. "I think Froakie has a gift for Ash as well."

Froakie nodded and jumped off the coffee table he was sitting on and went towards the kitchen. He came back rolling a Pokéball into the room and towards Ash.

"Is that you're pokéball, Froakie?" Ash asked, picking it up.

Froakie gave a small nod in response.

"But, I got this as soon as the summer camp was over," Ash said, clearly confused.

"I think what Froakie is trying to say Ash, is that now that you're ten, he can become your official Pokémon," said Delia.

"Is that true Froakie?" Ash asked, getting another nod from the Bubble Frog Pokémon.

"In that case," Ash said as he started swinging his arm. "I just caught a Froakie!" He struck a pose with his hand holding the pokéball in the air and sinking into a kneeling position with his head down. He looked up to see everyone giving him weird looks, unsure of what they just saw.

"I'll work on that."

"Alright Ash, last present," said Delia, handing him a large yellow box with a blue bow.

"Thanks Mom," Ash said as he opened the box. Inside there was what looked like a miniature Voltorb and a red cap with a white face that had a green triangle logo on it.

"Cool, a official Pokémon League hat," Ash exclaimed putting the hat on. "But what's with the Voltorb?"

"It's actually an alarm clock," said Delia, taking it out of the bag. She pressed a button and the Voltorb opened up like a Pokéball to reveal a clock and a miniature Pidgey inside.

"Oh cool," Ash said in amazement. "Thanks Mom."

"You're welcome sweety," said Delia.

"Hey Ash, why don't we call Serena right now?" Leaf suggested.

"Yeah, I want to be around when to see her face when she sees you," Daisy added.

"Alright, let's do it." Ash pulled out the device, typed in Serena's number and waited for her to pick up.

Eventually, the device projected a small 3 dimensional image of Serena. She had also changed over the years. Serena kept her hair at shoulder length and had also developed a good figure. She was wearing a dark grey tank top with a white collar, a red mini skirt, and a pink boater hat with a black rim.

"Hello, who is th-Ash!?" Serena said through the Holo Caster.

"Hey Serena," said the raven haired boy.

"How did you get my Holo Caster number?" Serena asked.

"Leaf gave it to me," he said. "She got me a Holo Caster of my own for my birthday and she knew I would want to call you with it."

"Oh that's right, Happy Birthday Ash," said Serena. "And thank you for giving Ash my number, Leaf."

"No problem," said the green eyed brunette.

"I-I like your hat Ash," said Serena, some shyness still present in her voice.

"Thanks, Mom got it for me," said the young boy.

"I got him 'Cooking for Dummies,'" Daisy interjected. Serena chuckled at the gift Daisy got Ash.

"Not you too," Ash groaned.

"By the way Serena," Delia spoke up. "Did you send a gift to Ash like you did before? I haven't received anything from Kalos yet."

"I do have a gift for Ash," said the hologram girl. "But it's not exacting I can send in the mail."

"What do you mean?" Ash asked.

"Well Ash, my gift is actually some fantastic news," said Serena. "I talked it over with my Mom and, once I get my own starter and begin my journey here in Kalos, I'm going to travel back to Kanto."

"Really!?" Ash, Leaf, and Daisy said in shock. The question being answered with the hologram giving a small nod.

"That's great Serena," Ash said, happy one of his best friends will be coming back to Kanto. "Maybe we can travel together."

While not entirely noticeable through the hologram, Serena's face began to blush. "That is what I was going to suggest."

"That'd be great," said Ash. He was very happy right now. He'd get to reunite with his first real friend very soon, and go on a journey with her. Ash could only think of the fun times he and Serena will have with each other and their Pokémon.

"So where are you flying into?" Daisy asked.

"I'll being taking the flight from Lumiose to Viridian City," Serena said.

"Then we'll meet you there too," said the brown eyed brunette. "Me and Leaf will be going our separate ways, but we would love to see you again."

"That'd be great," said Serena. "Well, I've gotta go. I'm meeting up with my friends here. I'll talk to you guys later."

"Alright, bye," the group said as the hologram disappeared.

"You know now that Serena's joining you on your journey, Daisy's gift was kind of pointless," Leaf joked, causing Ash's mom, Daisy, and Froakie to laugh.

"It's not funny guys," said Ash.

They pretty much had a good time for the rest of the day. If Ash wasn't excited for his journey before, he certainly was now. He would be re uniting with an old friend, travel with her, win badges, win the Pokémon League, become a Pokémon Master, and make his mother, as well as all of Pallet Town, proud of him.

* * *

 **And there is Chapter 2. I know some of you wanted Froakie to evolve over the four year time gap but I really don't think it's a good idea. It would make Ash overpowered, and that's already been done to death, and I think Froakie evolving all the way to Greninja now would result in Ash having another Charizard on his hands if you know what I mean.**

 **Also, some concerns about the Ash Aura thing. I'm not going to have Ash's Aura powers be focussed on in this Arc alone, I'm going to span out Ash's Aura discover over multiple arcs, this includes the Orange Islands, Johto, Hoenn, etc.**

 **I'm also not going to give Serena Psychic Powers because that has been done too much already. That's not to say she won't hold some importance, I'm just not giving her any kind of powers.**

 **Since Ash and Serena will be starting their journeys in different regions, I'm going to have two chapters dedicated to how they start off; one for Ash, one for Serena. Serena's chapter will be more like the X and Y games than the anime. And yes, that means Calem will be in this story but he won't be a love rival, that too has been done to death. I'm not exactly sure what he'll be like or what he'll do at this point, I just know Calem won't be trying to win Serena's affections.**

 **I must apologize in advance though. I won't be posting any more chapters for this story until April, just so the story feels like it's happening in real time. But fret not, By that time, I will (hopefully) have a lot of chapters already made by the time I actually get the story started. So in the meantime, please enjoy my other stories. Until next time.**


	3. The Journey Begins

**Chapter 3 - The Journey Begins**

 **Welcome back! Once again, I apologize for the wait, but I'm sure you will find it worth the wait. I decided to release this chapter a day early because I was too excited, next chapter will still be posted tomorrow. We are now going** **to finally get** **started on Ash's Journey. For right now, The chapters are going to play out similarly to the anime with minor differences but will get a bit more interesting when Serena gets to Kanto. So please excuse any lack of originality. With that being said, let the Journey Begin!**

 **I do not own Pokémon!**

* * *

Ash's Voltorb alarm clock went off with its Pidgey cries filling the room. Ash turned in his bed and slowly moved his arm to turn the thing off. He missed a couple of times before actually hitting it and dozing back off to sleep. Froakie on the other hand, was already awake before the alarm went off, practicing his moves. He merely sighed at his trainer's laziness, for he knew this was a regular habit of the raven-haired boy. Froakie new he would learn to get up earlier while on the road, but this was starting to get ridiculous. Fortunately, the Kalos starter knew exactly how to wake Ash up. Froakie went up to Ash's bed and let out a small bubble attack on him, the cold water from the bubbles causing Ash to wake up.

"Okay, okay, I'm up," Ash said, causing the little blue frog to stop his attack.

Ash looked towards the clock at his side and read it was 8:15 in the morning.

"Thanks, Froakie," said Ash, petting the bubble frog pokémon's head. "I would have been late if it wasn't for you."

Froakie gave a pleasing cry in response.

Ash got out of bed and went to the bathroom next door to take a shower. Once he was done he began changing into his jeans, black tee shirt, and short sleeved blue jacket. Once he was done he and Froakie went downstairs to the kitchen where Ash's mom was cooking by the stove and had a plate of pancakes on the table and a bowl of Pokémon food on the floor ready for the soon to be trainer and Pokémon.

"Good morning Ash," said Delia. "And you too, Froakie."

"Morning Mom," said Ash as he took a seat at the table, getting ready to eat his breakfast.

"Are you ready to get your official starter, Ash?"

"Yep, I can't wait to meet my new partner."

"Do you know who you're going to pick?" Delia asked as she joined Ash at the table with her own plate of pancakes.

"Well, I know Leaf is going to pick Bulbasaur, and Daisy can't decide between Charmander or Squirtle, so I'll probably go for whichever one is left."

"What if Gary gets his Pokémon before you do?"

"I hadn't thought of that," Ash said, taking a moment to think. "I guess I'll just have to pick from the next batch of starters."

"Alright, well I'm sure whatever Pokémon you get, you'll be the best of friends."

"We sure will," Ash said after finishing his plate. "Well, better get going. Ready Froakie?"

Froakie gave a small croak in acknowledgment. Ash got up and grabbed the hat he got from his mom and ran out the door, Froakie not far behind. They ran through the dirt roads of Pallet Town as they came to the gates of Professor Oak's lab. Leaf, Daisy, and Gary were already waiting outside.

"Hey Ash," Leaf waved.

"Hey guys," said Ash.

"Well, well, well, looks like Ashy-boy actually made it on time," said Gary with a smirk on his face.

"Shut up Gary," said Leaf. Daisy avoiding both of their gazes. Ash just rolled his eyes as he was used to this sort of interaction by now.

"Ah good, you four made it," said a familiar voice. The group turned to see Professor Oak standing there with the gate open. "Ready to obtain your first Pokémon?"

* * *

The four trainers had gathered in the lobby with three pokéballs on a table in front of them.

"In these 3 Pokéballs are the starter Pokémon you will be starting your journey with," the Professor explained. He went over to the pokéball on the left and picked it up.

"The Grass-type starter, Bulbasaur." The professor opened the pokéball and in a bright light, a small lizard-like creature on four legs appeared. It had turquoise and green scales, red eyes, and a huge, green bulb on it's back. The professor then picked up the pokéball in the middle.

"The Fire-type starter, Charmander." He opened that pokéball as well and a taller lizard with orange scales, standing on two legs appeared. It had blue eyes and yellow scales on its stomach that went along the bottom of its tail, which had a small flame at the end of it. Professor Oak then made his way to the last pokéball on the right.

"And finally, the Water-type, Squirtle." The small red and white ball opened to reveal a light blue turtle with a brown shell and a swirling tail standing on its hind legs.

"Well, which one of you will go first?"

Ash and Gary turned to Leaf and Daisy.

"Ladies first," said Ash, gesturing towards the Pokémon.

"For once Ashy-boy, I agree," said Gary. "You girls can pick first."

"Good to know your not a complete snob," Leaf remarked. "You can go first, Daisy. L comes after D you know."

"Okay, thank you Leaf," said Daisy.

She went towards the table and looked at the three Pokémon in front of her. She knew Leaf wanted Bulbasaur so she wouldn't pick that one, so it came down to Charmander and Squirtle. She studied the expressions that the two starters had. Squirtle had a look that suggested that it was confident she would choose him and not the other two. Charmander, on the other hand, looked confident, but his eyes looked like he was pleading with the all mighty powers that be that Daisy would choose him. While it made the Flame Pokémon seem desperate, Daisy could sympathize with this Pokémon, since she often prayed that Gary would let her go her own way.

"I think I'll choose Charmander," said Daisy, with Charmander looking up in glee.

"Are you certain?" Professor Oak asked.

"I'm sure Grandpa," Daisy responded with a smile.

Charmander jumped for joy and started doing a cute little dance before leaping right into Daisy's arms.

"You're quite the excitable little guy," Daisy said to the flame pokémon. "Is it okay if I call you Edan?"

Charmander gave a happy cry and a nod in response to his new name.

"Alright, Edan it is," said Daisy, holding the Lizard Pokémon high. "My name's Daisy. It's a pleasure to meet you."

"An excellent choice Daisy," said Professor Oak. He then handed his granddaughter a small yellow device and six pokéballs, Edan's included. "Here are five pokéballs and a Pokédex. This device can tell you anything you need to know about any Pokémon."

Daisy opened the device and held it in front of Charmander.

" _Charmander, the Lizard Pokémon,"_ said the device. " _A fire type. If it's healthy, the flame on the tip of its tail will burn vigorously, even if it gets a bit wet. This Charmander is male and knows Scratch, Growl, and Ember."_

"Alright it's my turn," said Leaf, heading towards the table and staring Bulbasaur right in the eyes. "Bulbasaur, my name is Leaf. Want to be my partner?"

The grass-type had a huge smile growing on his face as he jumped up and down in joy.

"You're a cute little guy aren't you," Leaf said to her new partner. "I think I'll call you, Florian."

"A good choice Leaf," said Professor Oak, handing Leaf her six pokéballs, including Florian's, and a Green Pokédex. Leaf opened it up and pointed it at her new partner.

" _Bulbasaur, the Seed Pokémon,"_ said the Pokédex. " _A grass and poison type. The seed on its back is filled with nutrients. The seed grows steadily larger as its body grows. This Bulbasaur is male and knows Tackle, Growl, and Vine Whip."_

Alright, it's my turn now," said Gary, matching over to the only remaining starter. "Consider yourself lucky Squirtle. I, the amazing Gary Oak, was going to pick you to be my awesome Pokémon."

The water type smiled as it leaped off the table and went over to Gary's side.

"Are you going to give it a name like Leaf and your sister?" Professor Oak asked as he gave Gary Squirtle's Pokéball.

"Nope, I think it's kind of dumb," Gary responded as he was also handed five empty pokéballs and a blue Pokédex. He then aimed the device at Squirtle and activated it.

" _Squirtle, the Tiny Turtle Pokémon,"_ said the device. " _A water type._ _It shelters itself in its shell, then strikes back with spouts of water at every opportunity. This Squirtle is male and knows Tackle, Tail Whip, and Water Gun."_

"Alright, it's finally my turn," said Ash as he walked up to the table. "Hey Professor, do you have another batch of Starters?"

"I'm sorry Ash," the professor replied with an apologetic look. "But I'm afraid I don't have any Bulbasaurs, Charmanders or Squirtles left. I won't be getting more until June."

"What!?" Ash said in shock. This was bad, if there were no official starters left, he couldn't go on his journey. Daisy, Leaf, and Froakie couldn't help but feel bad for Ash.

"Isn't there any other Pokémon you can give Ash?" Daisy asked.

"Well, there is one," Said Professor Oak." But I'm not so sure it's a good idea."

"I'll take it," ash said almost immediately.

"Alright," said Professor Oak, reaching for another Pokéball on a nearby counter. "Just so you know, this Pokémon has been abused and abandoned by trainers in the past, so he might not warm up to you for a while." He opened the Pokéball and a small creature with yellow fur, pointy, black tipped ears, red cheeks, and a lightning bolt tail appeared.

"It's a Pikachu," said Ash, staring at the electric type in front of him. He could obviously tell the yellow pokémon was male since the tip of its tail was flat. If Pikachu were a female, the tail would have been more heart-shaped.

Pikachu looked at the boy in front of him and then looked at the other people around him, an annoyed and angry look growing on its face. He was about to be given to a new trainer, **again.** He had learned his lesson the last time, humans are not to be trusted. Pikachu stuck up his nose and turned away from the trainers.

"Ha, only you would end up with a Pokémon that won't listen to you, Ashy-boy," Gary mocked.

The comment was picked up by the Electric Mouse and began to face him. Pikachu immediately recognized the brown-haired boy, making him even angrier. So in response to the insult, Pikachu unleashed a powerful Thunderbolt attack on everyone in the room, everyone let out a cry of pain. Once the attack finished, everyone had either collapsed or almost collapsed on the floor.

"Um, Grandpa," said Daisy. "Was that Pikachu the same Pichu me and Gary caught back at the summer camp four years ago?"

"Yes, yes it is," the eldest Oak confirmed. "How did you guess?"  
"It seemed to be mad at Gary before electrocuting us."

"So I got a Pikachu that has trust issues and hates Gary's guts," said Ash, getting back up on his feet. "This will not be easy. But I'm sure I can get Pikachu to open up to me."

Pikachu rolled his tiny brown eyes, not believing this kid could ever gain its trust.

"Maybe you should keep Pikachu in his pokéball before he causes even more trouble," Gary suggested.

"That's probably a good idea," said Ash, retrieving Pikachu's Pokéball from Professor Oak.

As soon as Pikachu heard the word "Pokéball," he panicked. There was no way he was going into that thing again. Pikachu enjoyed the little freedom he had and he wasn't going to lose it.

"Pikachu, return," Ash called out as a red beam emitted from the Pokéball.

Not wanting to go back, Pikachu jumped away from the beam. Confused by this, Ash tried again, and Pikachu dodged again, Ash tried again, Pikachu dodged again. This cycle kept going on for a while until Ash felt like exploding in rage.

"It looks like Pikachu doesn't want to go in its pokéball," said Leaf.

"Brilliant observation, genius," Gary said sarcastically.

"Gary, Leaf, please don't start a fight," Daisy said, trying to keep the two apart.

"Why won't you go in your Pokéball, Pikachu?" Ash asked in rage.

Pikachu merely turned his head away from the raven-haired boy.

"Maybe he just doesn't like being in there," Daisy suggested.

Ash looked back at Pikachu. It would make sense that Pikachu wouldn't like it in there, considering the mouse pokémon had problems with trainers in the past, Pikachu would have bad memories tied to the red and white device.

"Well, if that's the case, I won't force him," said Ash, catching the electric rodent off guard. "If he doesn't like being in his pokéball, then I won't put him in his pokéball."

This caught Pikachu's curiosity. This kid is **not** going to put him back in the ball? That was a first, none of his previous trainers did that, not even his first trainer, who had got him to evolve into Pikachu in the first place, let him just roam free. It was then that Pikachu noticed Froakie by Ash's feat, which confused the electric mouse even more until he began to recognize it too. It was the Froakie from four years ago, the one that crazy black haired man sent over. He had only seen him once but a Pokémon like that was kind of hard to forget.

The Bubble Frog went up to Pikachu to say hello to his new comrade. Pikachu asked the Kalos starter in its own pokémon language why he was sticking to the raven-haired boy like glue since the time four years ago. Froakie simply replied that he found him curious since he didn't try to catch him like all the other kids all did way back then. Pikachu was still confused by this so Froakie said that after getting to know Ash for a while, he learned he was a good kid with a big heart. Pikachu remained skeptical but chose to go with Froakie and the kid, just to see if it was true.

"Seems Froakie got through to him," said Leaf.

"Alrighty then," Ash said kneeling down to meet Pikachu's eyes.

"I know you won't trust me straight away, so let's start over," he said. "My name is Ash Ketchum, my dream is to become a Pokémon Master. I look forward to working with you, Pikachu."

Pikachu merely replied by sticking his nose up again and turning away from the boy, but it wasn't as high as before. Ash figures that this was a good of a start as any.

"Alright then," said Professor Oak, handing Ash five empty pokéballs and a red pokédex. "Oh, before I forget, all of your Pokédex's have information on all Pokémon, not just the ones here in Kanto."

Ash decided to put it to the test and aimed his Pokédex at Froakie.

" _Froakie, the Bubble Frog Pokémon,"_ said Ash's Pokédex. " _A water type. It protects its skin by covering its body in delicate bubbles. Beneath its happy-go-lucky air, it keeps a watchful eye on its surroundings. This Froakie is male and knows Pound, Bubble, Quick Attack, and Cut."_

Ash then shifted the device to his new Pokémon.

" _Pikachu, the Mouse Pokémon,"_ said the device. " _An electric type._ _It stores electricity in the electric sacs on its cheeks. When it releases pent-up energy in a burst, the electric power is equal to a lightning bolt. This Pikachu is male knows Thunderbolt, Agility, Growl, and Tail Whip."_

"Wow, that's quite the move set," Leaf complimented.

"Alright, let's get going," said Gary, returning Squirtle to his Pokébnall and heading to the door. "You coming, Daisy?"

"A-actually Gary," Daisy said nervously. "I was actually thinking of going on this journey by myself. You and I have different goals in mind and I think I'll just slow you down. We can't be together forever."

Gary was a little sad from the news. She was right though, the two of them have been together since birth. He knew they would be separated someday, he just wasn't planning on it being so soon.

"Besides," Daisy continued. "I don't think there's enough space for me."

"Okay," said Gary. "But if you get into any trouble, or some guy messes with you, I'm coming for you."

Daisy smiled at Gary, happy he was showing his more caring and brotherly side. "Deal."

"Well, smell ya later losers," said Gary as ran out of the room.

Daisy turned back to the other trainers as they both gave her confused looks.

"What did you mean by, 'not enough space'?" Leaf asked.

"Well…," Daisy said as she motioned towards the door.

Ash, Leaf, and the Pokémon looked outside to see nearly all of Pallet Town surrounding a red convertible with six cheerleaders inside.

"Um," Ash said as he and Leaf were at a lost for words.

"Uncle Daniel's 'special gift,'" Daisy replied.

That was the only explanation the two trainers needed. As the Mayor of Pallet Town, Daniel Oak loved to spoil his great-nephew and niece all the time, giving them whatever they wanted, a red convertible with cheerleaders was no exception. Both Ash and Leaf were thankful that Daisy didn't take advantage of her great-uncle as much as Gary did.

Gary got in the passenger seat of the car and the brunette in the driver's seat started it up. As the car began to pull away, Gary waved and blew kisses towards the crowd. Once the car was out of sight, only a small group of people were still there, Delia, and Leaf's parents, John and Rose Green.

"Hey there Ash," said Delia.

"What are you doing here, Mom?" Ash asked.

"Well, it just didn't seem right for me to not see you off on your big journey," Delia replied.

"Mom, Dad. Is that what you're doing too?" Leaf asked.

"But of course, we just had to be there for our little girl," said John. John Green had a very wide frame and a large stomach, his hair was short, curly, and grey from old age. He had Green eyes like her daughter and was wearing white pants, a blue and white striped polo shirt and a pair of small, oval glasses.

"Your father is right dear, it just didn't feel right," said Rose. Rose Green was much taller than Leaf and had a very good frame. She had long, brown hair like her daughter and brown eyes. She was wearing an ankle-length, light blue sundress with a small white sweater on top.

"Oh, you two," said Leaf as she pulled her parents into a hug, tears starting to form in her eyes.

"This is really great Mom, thanks," Ash said. He wasn't going to hug his mother out in public like Leaf was. After all, he was a man know.

"You're welcome, sweaty," said Delia. "Oh, and there's a few things I forgot to give you this morning."

She then began to pile things up in his hands from Ash's green backpack; some spare clothes, a sleeping bag, his toothbrush, some toothpaste, his swim trunks, toilet paper, rubber gloves, a clothesline, a few books on cooking and surviving in the wild, some snacks, hot cocoa, his favorite pillow…

"Mom, please, you're embarrassing me," Ash nearly shouted. "I'm only going to be able to take a few of these things. And I really don't think I'll be needing toilet paper."

"But what if you need to go to the bathroom while out in the wild?" Delia asked worryingly.

Blushing, Ash simply responded, "Well what am I supposed to do with it when I'm done? I can't take it with me and I know littering is illegal in any part of the world."

"Oh, I didn't think of that," said Delia. "I've never had to travel like you are, so this is still new to me."

"I'll be fine Mom," Ash said, trying to reassure her.

Delia then noticed that there was a second Pokémon at Ash's feet.

"And who is this little fella?" Delia asked, kneeling down to try and meet Pikachu's eyes.

"This is Pikachu," said Ash. "Professor Oak ran out of the usual starters so I ended up getting him instead."

Ash took a good look at the lady in front of him. He could tell that she was a cook with the smell of many different foods on her hands. He also noticed that she seemed to be a lot gentler and kinder than her son. She was alright in his books so far.

"So, why isn't he in his Pokéball?" But his opinion could change rather quickly. "I mean, I know you don't keep Froakie in his Pokéball all the time, but why not him?"

"Well, apparently he doesn't like going in his Pokéball," Ash explained. "Professor Oak also told me that Pikachu has had some bad history with trainers in the past, but I'm sure Froakie and I will get him to trust us."

Froakie let out a cry of determination similar to his trainer's, conveying the same message.

"Well okay, I trust you," said Delia, now more worried about her son than ever.

"Well, guys, I'm off," said Leaf. "I want it to make it to Viridian City as quickly as possible."

"I agree," said Daisy, "I heard there is going to be a big storm tonight."

* * *

It had been several hours since Ash, Daisy, and Leaf had left Pallet Town. Ash had told Leaf and Daisy to go on ahead since he wanted to try and bond with Pikachu. They gladly went on ahead but told Ash to be careful.

Ash decided to stop and have a little lunch before continuing on. So he brought out two bowls and filled them with Pokémon food for Froakie and Pikachu while he took out a sandwich his mom had made earlier. Ash was quite glad Pikachu was eating the food, it was at least a sign he will eat the food he would provide.

Ash took out his Holo Caster and read the time on the screen. It read 3:05 PM. Ash knew that the time difference between Kanto and Kalos was about eight hours, so it would be around seven in the morning over there so Serena should be awake by now, so he decided to give her a call. If she wasn't awake, Ash was sure Serena wouldn't mind being woken up by something other than her mom's Fletchling. He had heard Serena complain many times about Fletchling flying into her room and using peck to wake her up whenever he called her. So he went to his contacts, taped on Serena's number and waited for her to answer. He didn't have to wait long as a small hologram of a half-awake Serena in her pink pajamas and messy dirty blonde hair tied in a red bow.

"Hello," Serena said groggily.

"Good morning sleepy head," Ash said with a smile.

"Oh Ash," Serena said in shock, making her slightly more awake.

"Sorry, did I wake you?" Ash asked. He had a feeling she wouldn't mind, but it wouldn't hurt to be polite.

"Yeah, but don't worry about it," Serena said sweetly. "It's a lot better than Fletchling waking me up."

"So I've heard," said Ash.

Froakie noticed Ash was talking to Serena and hopped over to him and got on his shoulder, waving to the hologram.

"Hey Froakie," Serena waved back.

Pikachu looked up and was wondering who the tiny human that was being projected was. He didn't give it much thought and went right back to eating.

"I'm already on Route One, so I'll be in Viridian City by tomorrow at least," said Ash.

"That's great," said Serena cheerfully. "By the way which Pokémon did you get?"

"Funny story about that actually," Ash said nervously. "You see, Gary, Daisy, and Leaf had already gotten the last of the usual Kanto Starters so there was nothing left for me to pick. The good news is that Professor Oak had an extra Pokémon on hand and I ended up getting a Pikachu."

"A Pikachu?" Serena said curiously.

"Yeah, the bad news is that he's had some bad experiences with trainers in the past so he doesn't trust me entirely," Ash explained. "That and he's also the same Pichu that shocked Gary back at summer camp."

"Wow, well I'm sure you can get Pikachu to trust you eventually," said Serena with a smile. "But you do know you could have just called Professor Sycamore and have him register Froakie as your starter, right?"

"Since when?" Ash said in shock.

"Since January, didn't Professor Oak tell you?"

"He might have forgotten to tell me that," said Ash, slightly annoyed. He was so worried about not getting a starter when he could have just made a quick call and have Froakie become his official starter the entire time.

"That, or he didn't want to disturb him," Serena suggested. "I mean it would have been one or two in the morning if you called him then."

"That is a good point, but Daisy and I have seen him forget a few things lately," Ash replied. "Last month he couldn't figure out where he put his book on Rock-Type Pokémon when it was sitting on top of his desk the whole time."

"Maybe he is getting senile," Serena chuckled nervously. "Well, no point in dwelling on it now. I know you can get Pikachu to trust you someday."

"Thank, Serena," Ash smiled. "So have you decided on which starter you'll get?"

"Yep," Serena nodded. "I've decided to go with Fennekin, the fire-type. What did the other's get?"

"Well, Leaf got Bulbasaur, Daisy got Charmander, and Gary got Squirtle," said Ash.

"Well, looks like you've got an advantage over him already," said Serena. "And I don't just mean already having more Pokémon than him."

Ash gave a small chuckle in response.

"Well, I wish you luck on the first day of your journey," Ash said. "Just try to not get startled by any Poliwags."

"Very funny," Serena said flatly. "And you too."

Ash gave her a smile and a nod as he hung up and put the holo caster away. He then turned to his new starter Pokémon, who was happily munching away at his food. He needed to find a way to get on Pikachu's good side, he figured the best way to do that was to try to catch another Pokémon. So he stood up and began looking around until he saw a small, light brown feathered Pokémon with a small pink beak.

"Alright a Pidgey," Ash exclaimed as he took out his Pokédex to scan it.

" _Pidgey, The Tiny Bird Pokémon. A Normal/Flying type. A common sight in forests and woods. It flaps its wings at ground level to kick up flying sand."_

"This is the perfect opportunity to bond with Pikachu," Ash said as he put away the device. He knew very well that electric types had an advantage over flying types, so Pikachu could handle this no problem.

"Alright Pikachu, use Thunderbolt on that Pidgey," Ash commanded. The yellow rodent merely yawned and climbed up a nearby tree to take a nap. This made both Ash and Froakie falter a bit.

"Come on Pikachu, this isn't the time to be goofing around!"

Pikachu briefly turned his head towards his new trainer before going right back to its nap, this boy hadn't earned his trust just yet. Ash gave an exasperated sigh.

"Okay, guess we'll just have to show you how good I am ourselves, right Froakie?"

The Kalos starter gave a happy nod and jumped into a fighting stance. The Kanto bird noticed the hostility coming from the blue frog and also got ready for a fight.

"Alright Froakie, use Bubble." Froakie followed Ash's command and launched a stream of bubbles at Pidgey. The small bird was able to avoid the attack and started flapping its wings, kicking up the sand beneath it.

"It's using Sandstorm, I can't see a thing," said Ash trying to block the sand with his arms.

Froakie was also having trouble seeing and doing his best to protect his eyes from the Sandstorm.

The wind finally died down and before Ash and Froakie could launch a counter attack, the Pidgey had flown too far away.

"Aw man, it got away," Ash groaned in disappointment, Froakie mimicking his trainers' posture.

Both of them turned back to Pikachu when he heard the electric rodent _laughing_ at them. Never before had he seen a trainer fail to catch a simple Pidgey.

"Come on Pikachu, at least we tried," Ash said. He knew he was one to never give up until it's over, but Pidgey had already got a fair distance away, even if he and Froakie where to go after it, they wouldn't be able to catch up, no matter how fast they ran.

The yellow Rodent only continued to laugh at the raven-haired trainers misfortune. Froakie had gotten angry at the electric Pokémon, he had had enough of his attitude. The Bubble Frog Pokémon yelled at Pikachu in his own Pokémon tongue and told the rodent to stop mocking Ash. Pikachu merely pulled his lower, left eyelid and stuck out his tongue in response. This made Froakie furious, he would prove ash can be a great trainer to this ungrateful yellow pest once and for all.

The Kalos Starter looked around until he saw another figure in the tall grass. Another Pidgey, Froakie thought. Froakie could get the jump on it so Ash can go in a catch it, that'll show that pointy eared rodent.

Froakie jumped up in the air and threw some of its Frubbles at the figure. Ash immediately noticed this and smiled with glee.

"Alright, way to go Froakie! You got another Pidgey," Ash said, praising the Pokémon.

This gave Froakie a sense of pride. Surely this would impress the yellow furball. He turned back to the tree to see that Pikachu was still unimpressed, which just infuriated Froakie more.

"It's alright, Froakie," said Ash, trying to calm his old friend. "Let's just go catch the Pidgey."

Froakie just sighed and complied, he would have to settle this some other time.

The two of them slowly approached the object Froakie had hit, but as they got closer, they noticed the bird had a larger beak with brown feathers covering its face while the rest of its body had black and red feathers. This was **not** a Pidgey. Ash knew what it was, but scanned it with the Poké dex anyway.

" _Spearow, the Tiny Bird Pokémon. A Normal/Flying type. Spearow has a very loud cry that can be heard over half a mile away. If it's high, keening cry is heard echoing all around, it is a sign that they are warning each other of danger."_

Ash remembered something he was always told as a child, never anger a Spearow, and that is exactly what he did, Spearows face was clear of that.

"S-sorry about that, Spearow," Ash said nervously. "We thought you were a Pidgey."

A Pidgey? A Pidgey!? This kid thought it was an Arceus freaking Pidgey!? That mad Spearow angrier than before. It quickly freed itself from the sticky foam and began flying towards Ash and Froakie.

Both trainer and Pokémon panicked and ran in the opposite direction as Spearow pecked at the both of them.

"Come on Spearow, I said we were sorry," Ash cried, shielding his head.

Pikachu just watched the spectacle from the tree and was laughing harder than before. Never before had he seen such a pitiful display from a trainer and Pokémon. Froakie did his best to suppress the urge to shut Pikachu with his Frubbles since it wouldn't do him any good right now.

Unfortunately, Spearow had noticed the electric mouse laughing in the tree and got even madder. Was this runt also making fun of it? He will have to pay as well. Spearow then changed course towards Pikachu.

The yellow rodent stopped laughing as he noticed the spearow charge at it and started dodging the angry bird.

"Hey, leave Pikachu alone, he didn't attack you," Ash shouted. He then remembered that Spearow also tended to get angry very easily and realized that Spearow thought Pikachu was laughing at it instead of him.

Pikachu continued dodging the charging bird until he lost his balance and nearly fell off the branch, grabbing on to the branch as he fell.

"Pikachu," Ash yelled out in worry.

Spearow saw this opportunity and went in for one more swoop. Pikachu felt like he had had enough and unleashed a powerful Thunderbolt on the normal/flying type and it fell to the ground.

"Alright Pikachu, you got him," Ash praised as the electric type got himself safely on the ground.

The Spearow got back up and was extremely upset. It was time to call the calvary. The Tiny Bird Pokémon made a loud caw like the Pokédex said, and sure enough a whole flock of Spearow came rushing in.

Both Ash, Froakie, and Pikachu panicked at the sight and knew there was only one thing to do. "Run!"

The three of them ran as fast as they could through the path trying to escape the angry flock, but they were starting to catch up quickly.

"Don't worry you two," Ash said between breaths. "I'll protect you."

Froakie simply smiled as he continued running. Ash was always putting others before himself.

Pikachu, on the other hand, had different thoughts. This kid and the annoying frog were the reason they were in this mess in the first place. Pikachu figured it would be better to bolt off on his own than stay with those walking danger magnets.

"Hey Pikachu, what are you doing?" Ash shouted. "I said I would protect you." He was then interrupted as the flock of Spearow began pecking at the three of them one after another. Their attacks mostly focusing on Pikachu, since he was the one who made their comrade call for help.

"Hey, leave him alone," Ash yelled. "Froakie quick, use Pound."

Froakie did as he was told, while he wasn't fond of the electric mouse, he didn't want the death of a Pokémon on his conscience. The attack was just enough to break the Spearow up for Ash to dive in and scoop up Pikachu in his arms, he was breathing but had taken a lot of damage. It wasn't long before the Spearow continued their assault.

Ash then dashed towards the trees until he came to a large waterfall. He might be able to lose the Spearow if the let the river's current take them far enough.

"Lets hope this works," Ash yelled and he and Froakie ran towards the cliff and dived off. They were able to land in the river successfully and the current swept them away.

* * *

Further, down the river, a young redheaded girl with a side ponytail wearing a yellow tank top and short jeans held up by red suspenders was fishing, hoping to catch a new water type Pokémon before a big storm that was coming, but she hasn't had much luck so far. She sighed. Surely she would at least get one bite. Suddenly, she noticed some bubbles around the bobber and it began to go down.

"Alright," they girl exclaimed in excitement as she got up to real her latest catch in. "It looks like a really big one."

She pulled and pulled with all her might and was able to pull what had nagged her line out of the water and onto the shore next to her. She looked over to see what she caught but to her surprise, it wasn't a huge water pokémon, but a boy no older than her cradling a Pikachu and a Pokémon she didn't recognize, and they looked very hurt.

"Hey are you okay," said the redhead.

"Yeah, I'm fine thanks," said Ash, as he met with the face of his rescuer, he was really lucky he found that fishing line or there was no telling where he, Froakie, and Pikachu might have ended up. He suddenly felt a sharp pain on his cheek as the girl gave him a hard slap.

"Not you," she said in aggravation. "I was talking about the Pokémon. Look what you've done to the poor things."

"Hey I didn't do this," Ash exclaimed. He then noticed something in the distance coming towards them, and he immediately realized what it was. "They did."

The redhead turned to see a whole flock of Spearow approaching. Ash felt a tinge of disappointment since he wasn't able to lose them like he had planned. He then noticed a red bike with a basket leaning against a tree, it probably belonged to the girl.

"Hey, where's the nearest Pokémon Center?" Ash asked.

"About a couple meters that way," said the girl, pointing in the direction away from the river.

"Then I'm going to have to borrow this," Ash said as he put both of his Pokémon in the basket.

The girl finally registered what he was doing and went to stop him.

"Hey that's my bike," she shouted, but the raven haired boy had already taken off.

"I'll give it back some day," he shouted as he peddled away.

Ash knew he was technically stealing this bike, but this was an emergency. He needed to get Froakie and Pikachu to a Pokémon Center, fast. He hoped this bike was fast enough but the Spearow were already catching up. To make matters worse, it suddenly started raining and the damp ground was making it hard for Ash to go any faster.

"Hang on you guys, were almost there," said Ash, trying to reassure them.

The Spearow had caught up to them and continued pecking Ash and his Pokémon as lightning came down from the sky. This caused Ash to run off a small hill and crash on the ground. Ash looked up to see both Froakie and Pikachu on the ground, barely able to move. Ash knew they needed to be healed soon, but the Spearow were about to come in for another strike. Ash knew there was only one thing to do. He reached for his belt and grabbed both Pikachu and Froakie's Pokéballs.

"Pikachu, I know you don't like going in your ball," said Ash, placing the red and white spheres in front of them. "But I need you and Froakie to go inside so you'll be safe. After that… just trust me, okay."

He then got up and faced the Spearow with a determined look on his face.

"Spearow," he shouted. "My name is Ash Ketchum from Pallet Town, and I'm going to become a Pokémon Master. I can't and won't be defeated by the likes of you."

Pikachu looked up at his new trainer. What on Earth is he doing?

"I'm going to capture and defeat you all, and if you want to harm any of my Pokémon," Ash continued as he stretched out his arms. "Then you'll have to go through me first!"

This had caught Pikachu off-guard, this kid was going to risk his life just so he could live? That was so stupid.

"So hit me with everything you've got." Ash never faltered or moved from his spot.

At some point, Froakie had gotten up and stood next to Ash, holding the same pose, indicating he felt the same. If Froakie's brother-in-spirit was going down, then he was too.

PIkachu just stared as both Ash and Froakie took the Spearow's attacks head on. None of his previous trainers had ever taken a bullet for him, ever. Even after treating the kid and his amphibious ally like trash, they were defending him. He couldn't tell if he was crying or it was just the rain falling on his face, but Pikachu felt something he hadn't felt in a long time, happiness.

With what little strength he had, Pikachu slowly started to get up. He may have been a jerk to the kid and the frog, but there was no way he was letting them die today. He then jumped up to Ash's shoulder and leaped off in front of him, surprising the Pallet native and Froakie. Then, as another bolt of lightning came down, the electric mouse then unleashed the most powerful Thunderbolt he could muster and struck the entire flock of Spearow's in one hit. One that ended up hitting everything within range.

It wasn't long before Ash, Pikachu, and Froakie woke up, the storm had cleared and all the Spearow were laid out across the field, completely paralyzed and knocked out.

"Wow," Ash said under his breath. Froakie made a similar action. Neither of them had ever seen a thunderbolt that powerful, and neither of them had expected to actually survive the blast. Ash slowly got up and picked up both Froakie and Pikachu in his arms.

"That was amazing Pikachu," said Ash.

He was about to say more when he heard a strange call from the sky. He, Pikachu, and Froakie looked up to see a large bird fly across the rainbow filled sky. Ash would have taken out his Pokédex to scan it but he was too enamored by the beast's majesty. Only a small feather fell into his hands as the bird disappeared from view.

"Pikachu, Froakie," Ash said. "I think this is where our real journey begins."

To be continued...

* * *

 **And that's the beginning of Ash's journey. If you want to know which model of Pokédex I'm using, use your imagination. I have no preference on any of the Pokédex designs, so you guys can make it whichever model you want. I had a little trouble figuring out how I was going to get the Spearow pissed at Ash since he has another Pokémon other than Pikachu this time, but I think this works out pretty well. And yes, I named the great-uncle Oak Daniel, I'm not sure about the other one. Also,** _ **may**_ **have given one small hint at aura but you have to look closely to spot it, I might include more of those in the future but they still won't take up too much of the focus. I hope you guys enjoyed and look forward to Serena's chapter that will be released very soon. So until next time.**

 **Next Chapter: A Kalos Start**


	4. A Kalos Start

**Chapter 4 - A Kalos Start**

 **Well, we all saw how Ash's Journey started out, now let's see how Serena starts her journey in Kalos. As you already know, Serena will join Ash in Kanto, she just needs to get her starter and head to the Lumiose City Airport. I've also decided to make some more tweaks so that it's similar, yet different from the X and Y games. We will be picking up right after Ash's call. So, let the journey begin again!**

 **I do not own Pokémon!**

* * *

It was a lovely day in the Kalos Region, especially in the small village known as Vanville Town. it was no different from Pallet Town in the Kanto Region. Just a small and peaceful town. The only notable difference was that the houses were much closer together. One house of note had a large rhino-like Pokémon known as Rhyhorn living in the front yard. Inside, a young woman with tanned skin and brown hair wearing a black tee shirt and a green jumpsuit with the top half tied around her waist was preparing breakfast. A small bird Pokémon with red feathers on its head by her side. The woman looked at the clock and noticed that it was getting rather late and her daughter still hadn't come down. She let out a deep sigh, why did her daughter have to be such a late riser?

"Fletchling, can you go wake up Serena?" The woman asked addressing the bird.

The robin-like pokémon chirped in response and flew upstairs and into an average sized bedroom with pink wallpaper and Pokémon plushies scattered throughout.

Fletchling had thought that she would find a young, honey-blonde girl peacefully sleeping in her bed without a care in the world, he was surprised to find that the girl was not only not in bed, but she was fully awake, brushing her hair in front of a mirror while wearing some black, knee-high socks, a red mini-skirt with two pockets, and a grey tank top with a white collar.

"Oh, good morning Fletchling," said the girl. "I'll be down in just a minute, but can you bring Mom up here?"

The tiny bird nodded and flew back downstairs to the kitchen.

"Well that was fast," said the woman. "I didn't even hear her usual 'rude awakening' scream. Don't tell me she's already up?"

Fletchling nodded and motioned with his head towards upstairs.

"She wants to see me?" She couldn't help but wonder what her daughter wanted.

Mrs. Yvonne walked up the stairs and went into her daughter's room and found Serena fully clothed and holding two hats in her hand.

"Morning Mom," said Serena.

"Good Morning, Serena," said her mother, still amazed she was up this early. "How were you able to get yourself up?"

"Oh, Ash called me earlier this morning," Serena replied. "Say, Mom, which hat do you think looks better?"

In Serena's right hand was a dark red beanie hat with a pink pom-pom on top and in her left was a pink straw hat with a short rim and a black ribbon wrapped around it.

Fashion advise, of course. Now Ms. Yvonne knew how her daughter acted when she gave her input, but she needed to get the rest of breakfast ready, so she had to choose quickly.

"I think that one looks good," she said, pointing to the hat in her daughter's right hand.

"Alright, this one then," said Serena as she tossed the hat her Mom picked aside and put the other hat on her head.

" _I should have known,_ " Mrs. Yvonne thought. Now, Serena's Mom felt she had a pretty cool fashion sense, but according to her daughter, it was the exact opposite. Whenever Serena asked her mom for advice, she always picked the opposite of what she picked. She knew that, and she still gave her opinion.

"Alright, come on down, breakfast is almost ready," said the older woman.

"Alright." Suddenly, they heard the doorbell. "I'll get it."

Serena ran down the stairs to the front door and opened it to find a girl about her age with short, black hair and blue eyes, wearing a white sundress with white shorts.

"Diantha," Serena said, giving her best friend a hug.

"Good morning, Serena," said the other girl, returning the hug.

"Oh, Diantha what a surprise," said Serena's mom.

"Hello Mrs. Yvonne," said Diantha. "You mind if I join you for breakfast?"

"Diantha, we talked about this, call me Grace," said the older woman. "And of course you can, I just so happen to have made extras."

Diantha thanked Serena and her mom for letting her join and sat down with Serena at the table. On the plates in front of them were plates of scrambled eggs, a croissant, and some steamed vegetables.

"I'm surprised to see you so energetic this morning," said Diantha as she started eating her food. "You're not usually like this when Fletchling wakes you up."

"Ash actually beat him to the punch today," said Grace. "He called her earlier this morning actually."

"Oh, so you got a wake-up call from your boyfriend, huh?" Diantha teased.

The teasing was successful as Serena almost choked on her food as her face turned bright red.

"D-Diantha! He's not… we're not… I mean I do admire him, but...," Serena stammered as she tried to find a way to defend herself but that only caused the two other women to laugh at Serena's embarrassment.

"Serena, we're only teasing," said her mother.

"So what did he call you about?" Diantha asked.

Serena took a moment to calm herself down before answering, though, her cheeks were still glowing.

"W-well, he called me to show which starter he got," she replied.

"So which of the three Kanto starters did he get?" Grace asked.

"Well, apparently they were out of Bulbasaurs, Squirtles, and Charmanders so he got a Pikachu instead."

"A Pikachu?" Diantha said in shock.

"Couldn't he have just called Professor Sycamore and asked to register Froakie as his starter?" Grace asked.

"That's what I said," Serena replied. "Apparently Professor Oak 'failed to mention that.'"

"Well, it's definitely a unique choice for a starter Pokémon," said Diantha. "I'm sure they'll be a great team."

"Actually, Ash told me he and Pikachu weren't getting along at all at the moment," said Serena. "He's also the same Pichu from Summer Camp."

"The same one that shocked the Oak boy?" Serena's mother asked, to which Serena firmly nodded. "Oh boy, Ash certainly has his work cut out for him."

"I'm sure he's fine," said Diantha. "From what you've told me about him, I think he'll become best friends with that Pikachu in no time."

It was nice to hear such comforting words from her friend, but for some odd reason, Serena felt like something was wrong, but she wasn't sure what.

"Well, speaking of starters," said Diantha. "Are you ready to get ours later today?"

"You bet," Serena replied. "Calem is bringing them from Professor Sycamore's lab, right?"

"Yep, we'll be meeting at that café in Aquacorde Town," Diantha confirmed.

"Great," Serena smiled as she continued to eat her breakfast.

* * *

"Make sure you keep practicing your Rhyhorn Racing whenever you can," said Serena's mom as she was about to see the two girls off.

Serena hesitated a little before saying, "Okay Mom." She then gave her mother a hug, and after saying goodbye to Rhyhorn, Serena and Diantha took off to Aquacorde Town.

"And make sure you and Ash don't do anything too crazy!"

"Mom!" Serena replied with a face as red as a Tamato Berry, knowing what her mother was implying. Grace just chuckled and waved the two girls goodbye.

"Are you really going to practice Rhyhorn Racing while you're in Kanto?" Diantha asked.

"Not really," Serena honestly replied. "It was the only way to convince her to let me go on this journey. I just don't have the heart to tell her I don't have the same drive for Rhyhorn Racing she does."

"I'm sure she wouldn't mind you spending some alone time with your Ashy-poo," Diantha teased.

"Diantha!"

"Alright, alright, pardon," Diantha chuckled. "But seriously, it's pretty obvious you have a crush on him. I'm sure your mom doesn't mind if you just want to spend time with him."

"I know, but I don't want my journey to be _just_ about Ash," Serena said. "I want to see if I can find a dream of my own. I mean, you want to be an actress, Calem wants to be a great researcher like Professor Sycamore, same goes for Daisy with Professor Oak, Leaf wants to complete the Pokédex, Ash wants to be a Pokémon Master, but what do _I_ want to do?"

"I'm sure you'll find something," Diantha said, placing a reassuring hand on her shoulder.

Serena gave her best friend a heartwarming smile. "Thanks, Dia."

"No problem, Ser."

* * *

Aquacorde Town was not as big as Vanville Town, but it had more shops and cafés that it's neighbor. At one of the cafés, a young man with black hair wearing grey khaki pants, a blue jacket, a red cap with sunglass resting on top was waiting patiently for his remaining guests. They were supposed to meet here a few minutes ago, where were they?

"Hey, Calem!"

The boy turned to see the two people he was waiting for.

"Diantha Beauchêne, Serena Yvonne, you're late," he stated firmly.

"Come on Calem, you know Serena's not a morning person," said Diantha.

"Mrs. Yvonne contacted me and told me Serena was actually up early today," said Calem.

"That's because she got a call from Ash," Diantha explained with a smirk on her face.

"I… see," Calem replied. "Serena, are you sure you want to go to Kanto for your journey? I'm sure you can find what it is you want to do here in Kalos."

"I told you before Calem," Serena said. "I made a promise to my friends I would come back and see them. I can't go back on my word now."

"Of course," Calem replied.

He knew that of course, he just wish that one of those friends wasn't _Ash Ketchum_. Calem has had always seen Serena as a little sister, and he was a very overprotective big brother. When Serena came back from Summer Camp, something he greatly opposed, she couldn't stop talking about all the friends she's made, especially _Ash Ketchum_. It was obvious she had a crush on this boy and Calem didn't like it. But, if it made Serena happy, he would tolerate it.

"Anyway, here are the Starter Pokémon and Pokédex' from Professor Sycamore's lab," Calem said, presenting the three spheres.

"Did you make your choice yet, Calem?" Diantha asked.

"Not quite," the boy replied. "I figured I'd let you two pick first."

"And they say chivalry is dead," Diantha teased.

The black haired female looked at the Pokéballs in front of her and made her decision.

"I'll go with Chespin," she said as she grabbed the Pokéball on the left and released a small brown rodent with a green hood with spikes on its head. Calem gave Diantha a Pokédex and she scanned her new partner.

" _Chespin, the Spiny Nut Pokémon,"_ said the device. " _A Grass-type._ _The quills on its head are usually soft. When it flexes them, the points become so hard and sharp that they can pierce rock. This Chespin is male and knows Growl, Vine Whip, Bite, and Rollout"_

"Fantastic, I'm sure we will get along great Chespin," said Diantha, to which the grass-type gave a happy reply.

"Alright Ser, it's your turn," said Diantha.

Serena went up to the tray and grabbed the center Pokéball.

"You're going with Fennekin?" Calem asked.

"Yeah, I had made up my mind a long time ago," Serena smiled. "Besides, I'm sure it will be confusing if Ash and I both had Froakies."

"Of course," Calem said hoarsely as he handed Serena her Pokédex. She then proceeded to release and scan the starter. It was a quadrupedal creature with yellow fur and red fur coming out of its ears and a big, bushy tail.

" _Fennekin, the Fox Pokémon. A Fire type. Eating a twig fills it with energy, and its roomy ears give vent to air hotter than 390 degrees Fahrenheit. This Fennekin is female and knows Scratch, Tail Whip, Ember, Howl."_

"Oh, I'm looking forward to snuggling up with you on cold nights," Serena smiled. The yellow fire starter gave a happy yelp.

"Then that leaves me with Froakie," said Calem. He grabbed the remaining Pokéball and released the water starter and scanned it with the remaining Pokédex.

" _Froakie, the Bubble Frog Pokémon. A Water type._ _It secretes flexible bubbles from its chest and back. The bubbles reduce the damage it would otherwise take when attacked. This Froakie is male and knows Pound, Bubble, Growl, and Quick Attack."_

"Alright, this is where we go our separate ways," said Diantha. "I'm going to miss you guys."

"Me too," said Serena. "One last group hug?"

The two girls mostly looked at Calem, knowing he wasn't really into public displays of affection.

"Alright, if you insist," Calem agreed, feeling the pressure from both girls gazes.

The three wrapped their arms around each other before heading in separate directions. Diantha went back to her house to introduce her new Chespin to parents, Calem went off on the path towards Camphrier Town, saying he had an errand to run for Professor Sycamore, and Serena went on the path towards Lumiose City. Sure she wanted to introduce Fennekin to her Mom, but right now, she had a plane to catch.

Serena made a brief stop in Santalune City to get some well-needed rest, her flight would leave in 2 days so she had just enough time to get to Lumiose City and rest up before her flight; however, something was still bothering her. She didn't know why she just had a very bad feeling.

"Maybe I should give Ash a call."

* * *

 **And that is Chapter 4! Sorry that this chapter wasn't as eventful, but I'll make up for it soon enough. What did you guys think of having Calem** _ **and**_ **Diantha be Serena's friends at the start of her journey? Bet you weren't expecting that! Yes, Diantha will be champion by the time the Kalos Arc comes around. I think having Calem being Professor Sycamore assistant is probably the best thing I can come up with, even if that's not original. And no, Serena's feeling that something was wrong wasn't special powers, just a little something I like to call the "Ash-is-in-Danger Radar." Also, while I did say Calem wouldn't be a love rival, having him as an overprotective big brother can also make him opposed to Serena dating Ash, I'm not sure if anyone has done that. Anyhow, the story will continue!**

 **Oh, before I forget, Allow me to state that just like in the anime, Ash will NOT be catching any legendaries. That is all.**

 **Next Chapter: Pokémon Center Shutdown!**


	5. Pokémon Center Shutdown

**Chapter 5 - Pokémon Center Shutdown!**

 **Welcome back! Ash is about to meet Team Rocket for the first time. Don't worry, I have a plan for them. With that being said, let's get into the chapter.**

 **I do not own Pokémon!**

* * *

He made it.

Through some unexplained miracle, he made it to the Pokémon Center.

As saw Viridian City in sight as the sun was setting, Ash felt a jolt of relief rush through his body. That is until Officer Jenny, a policewoman with green hair, stopped him from entering since there was a band of thieves lurking about and they didn't want to let anyone into the city without identification. Ash showered her his Trainers License on his Pokédex and explained his situation to her. After that, she offered him a ride on her motorcycle to the Pokémon Center.

To say it was a bumpy ride would be an understatement. Jenny had gone extremely fast and rode her bike all the way up the stairs and into the main entrance, much to the dismay of Nurse Joy, a woman with pink hair tied into two looped ponytails who runs the Pokémon Center.

Ash was now waiting in the lobby for Pikachu and Froakie to be healed. He knew they were in capable hands now, but that didn't keep him from worrying.

"Hey Ash, looks like you made it," said a familiar voice.

Ash turned to see Leaf and Daisy stand right there.

"Oh, hey there girls," Ash said, his usual enthusiasm no longer present.

"What the heck happened to you?" Leaf asked, noticing the scars on Ash's body.

"Well you see," he was about to continue when he heard his Holo Caster go off in his pocket. He took it out and immediately saw it was Serena's number.

"It's Serena," Ash said as he opened up the device and a small hologram of their Kalos friend appeared. "Hey, Serena."

"Hey Ash, I'm in Santalune City right now," Serena said through the Holo Caster. "Wait, why are you covered in scratches?"

"We were just asking him the same thing," Leaf responded, coming into the Holo Casters view.

"Hey Serena," said Daisy.

"Oh, hey you two," Serena greeted before turning back to Ash. "Well?"

Ash let out a sigh as he explained the incident with the Spearow to the three girls, the look of worry and concern ever growing on their faces.

"Oh my gosh, that's terrible," said Serena.

"Are Pikachu and Froakie okay?" Daisy asked.

"They're getting treated by Nurse Joy right now," said Ash. "But Pikachu is the one I'm worried about the most, he got hit more than Froakie did."

"I'm sure they'll be fine Ash," said Serena, trying to reassure her Kanto friend. She was still more worried about Ash though. She didn't like the idea of Ash getting hurt, even if it was to help someone, but that's just the kind of person Ash is.

"Man, we leave you alone for one minute and you're already getting into trouble," said Leaf. "By the way, Serena, did you get your starter?"

"Yep, she's right here," said Serena. She ducked down and picked up her new Pokémon to show to her friends.

"Everyone, meet Fennekin," said the Kalos girl. "Fennekin, these are my friends from Kanto."

The tiny fox let out a yelp as a greeting.

"Aw, it's so cute," said Daisy.

"Yep, I have a feeling we'll get along just fine," said Serena.

"Alright, we can't wait for you to get here," said Leaf. "We'll wait in Viridian as long as possible so we can greet you."

"About that," said Serena. "Before I called Ash, I got a message from the flight company. Since there are some thieves running around the city where you guys are, they're being extra cautious about who comes into the city."

"Yeah, Officer Jenny was very suspicious of us when we first arrived," said Leaf.

"Same with me," Ash replied.

"Yeah, so I was told that they are closing the Viridian City Airport for a few weeks until they can neutralize them."

"So does that mean your flight was canceled?" Daisy asked.

"No my flight will still leave as planned," Serena replied. "But I'll be landing in Pewter City instead."

"Then that means you'll be there just in time for my first gym battle," said Ash.

"Yep, and maybe we can catch some more Pokémon before we meet up again," Leaf added.

"That would be great," said Serena. "Alright, I'll talk to you guys later, and Ash, take care of those cuts."

"Alright, I will, bye Serena," Ash said as he closed the Holo Caster.

"Hey Ash, shouldn't you call your mom and tell her you've made it here?" said Daisy.

Ash's sort of panicked when he heard that. "She's gonna really chew me out for this."

"Of course she is, she's your mother," said Leaf. "You know she'll worry more if she doesn't hear from you."

Ash sighed, knowing Leaf was right. He opened up his Holo Caster and Dialed his house's number. The device ringed for a few seconds before a hologram of Ash's mother appeared.

"Hello?" said the Hologram.

"Hey Mom, it's me, Ash," said Ash.

"Oh hey Ash," she replied. "Have you made it to Viridian City?"

"Yep, I'm at the Pokémon Center right now," Ash replied.

Delia smiled knowing her son made it to Viridian City safe and sound. But then she noticed the scratches on Ash's face.

"Ash why is your face all scratched up?" she asked, starting to worry.

Ash sighed in defeat. No point in hiding anything from her. "Long story short, I accidentally angered a bunch of Spearow. I was able to get away thanks to Pikachu and Froakie, but they got hurt way more than I did."

"Oh Ash, what am I going to do with you?" said Delia. "Though, I should have expected this. You are a trainer now. Just promise me you'll be a lot safer from now on."

Ash smiled and said, "I'll do my best."

"By the way, did Leaf and Daisy make it there okay?"

"Yeah they got here before me," Ash replied. "Though, Serena's flight will be landing in Pewter City instead of Viridian now."

"Oh! Well, at least you will still get to see each other again. I'll make sure to tell Professor Oak you all made it to Viridian City. I'll talk to you later."

"Alright, bye Mom."

"Oh, and Ash, don't forget to change your underwear."

Ash closed up the device as he felt a blush coming to his face. He heard the girls behind him snicker at Ash's embarrassment which only made him blush harder. Why did his mother have to say that?

The embarrassment died down as Nurse Joy came into the Lobby with a fully Froakie on a cart being pushed by a pink, egg-shaped Pokémon. Leaf took out her Pokédex to scan the creature.

" _Chansey, the Egg Pokémon. A Normal Type. A gentle and kind-hearted Pokémon that shares it's nutritious eggs if it sees an injured Pokémon."_

"Ash, you're Froakie is fully healed," said Nurse Joy as Froakie hooped it's way to Ash's right shoulder.

"Great to have you back buddy," said the raven-haired trainer, the Kalos starter giving a happy cry in response. Ash; however, was still concerned. "What about Pikachu?"

Nurse Joy's face went from happy to sad.

"He'll make it, but since he suffered more injuries and was completely drained of electric energy, he'll need to be treated a little longer."

Ash didn't like the sound of that, but he understood that Nurse Joy knew what she was doing.

"Can I see him?" Ash asked.

"In a bit," the nurse replied. "In the meantime, why don't you go treat your own wounds."

"We'll help him out with that," said Daisy.

Nurse Joy nodded and went back to the back of the building.

Before Daisy and Leaf could tend to Ash's wounds, Ash's Holo Caster went off again. Ash checked to see who the caller was.

"It's the Professor," he said.

He opened up the device and a hologram of Professor Oak appeared.

"Ash, I'm glad to hear you made it to Viridian City," said the Professor.

"Thanks, Professor," said Ash.

"I also heard you got into some trouble with a few Spearow," said Oak.

"Yeah, I did," Ash said nervously. "Although, I did see something strange when it was over."

"Strange?" Professor Oak asked curiously.

"Yeah, I saw some strange Pokémon fly over me as the storm cleared," said Ash. "It looked as if it made the rain go away all by itself."

"Interesting," said the Professor as he pondered. "Did you scan it with your Pokédex."

Ash immediately realized this and said, "You know, I was so amazed by it that I actually forgot."

"Of course you did," Leaf replied coyly.

"But I did manage to get a feather that landed near me." Ash reached into his bag and pulled out the orange, white, and green feather.

Professor Oak examined it for a while and his eyes grew wide as he came to a conclusion.

"Ash that seems to be a feather from the Legendary Ho-oh!"

This made the group grow in shock.

"Ho-oh!? As in the Legendary Bird from Johto that is said to bring eternal happiness?" Leaf asked.

"I can't be certain, but that definitely looks a lot like a Ho-oh feather," said the Pokémon Professor. "I won't know for sure until I see it in person but Ash, make sure you hold onto that feather."

"Don't worry Professor, I will," said Ash.

"Well, I'll see you later," said Professor Oak as the hologram disappeared and Ash closed the device.

"Man, you got to see a legendary Pokémon before me," said Leaf. "Words cannot describe how jealous I am right now."

"You certainly are lucky Ash," said Leaf. "Now let's have a look at those scratches."

* * *

She was furious, absolutely furious. The redhead followed the train the boy who made of with her bike and found said bike bent, bruised, and fried. When she finds that kid, she is going to kill him; or at the very least, make him pay her back for the damage. Since he was a trainer, she was sure she would find him at the Pokémon Center in Viridian City. So she carried her damaged bike as she made her way through the city and eventually found herself in front of the Pokémon Center. She entered and found the boy who destroyed her bike getting some scratches tended to by two girls about the same age as him and the strange Pokémon she saw with him. Great, not only is he a destroyer of personal property but a pervert too. She decided to put that aside and get him to pay her for her bike.

"Hey you," she screamed, getting the attention of the three trainers attention. "You destroyed my bike! Now you've gotta pay!"

"Oh, it's you," said the boy. "Look I'm sorry about your bike Ms…"

"Misty!" the redhead replied angrily.

"Misty, right," said the boy. "Look I'm sorry about your bike, but it was emergency."

"I don't care, you need to pay me back for all the damage you caused," Misty yelled.

"Hey, lay off," said the girl with a white cap. "Ash needed to get away from those Spearow and get his Pokémon healed. I think a little damage to your precious bike is less important."

"That bike costs a lot of money," Misty fumed.

"Leaf, calm down," said Daisy.

"Yeah, let's not get into any unnecessary fights," Ash added. "Misty, I'm sorry about your bike, it was an accident. I promise I will pay you back when I have the money, but right now I'm more worried about Pikachu."

"Oh, right, how is he?" The redhead said, seeming to have calmed down a little.

"He'll recover, but he's still in treatment," Ash said sadly.

"How could you let something like that happen to your Pokémon?" The Redhead shouted again.

"Hey, we're still new trainers," Leaf said. "We're bound to make some mistakes."

"Well he still should have been more careful," Misty shouted back.

Their arguing was cut short by the sound of broken glass. The four trainers looked up to see two Pokéballs fall through the roof and land on the floor. They opened up to reveal a small purple ball with a strange face and pores and a purple snake with yellow eyes. Ash and Daisy took out their Pokédex's for a quick scan.

" _Koffing, the Poison Gas Pokémon. A Poison Type._ _Because it stores several kinds of toxic gases in its body, it is prone to exploding without warning."_

" _Ekans, the Snake Pokémon. A Poison Type. It can freely detach its jaw to swallow large prey whole. It can become too heavy to move, however."_

The Koffing then made smoke come out of its pores as it went around the room, the Ekans grabbing some Pokéballs from the counter.

"What's going on?" Ash asked out loud, but no one could answer since they couldn't tell either.

He then noticed three large shadows, on smaller than the other two, come down through the smoke.

"Prepare for trouble," said a female voice.

"Make it double," said a male voice.

"To protect the world from devastation," the female voice.

"To unite all people within our nation," said the male voice.

"To denounce the evils of truth and love," said the female.

"To extend our reach to the stars above," said the male.

The smoke began to clear a little to reveal to voices origins. There were two humans there wearing white uniforms with a big red "R" on the shirt, one man, one woman, and a cat-like Pokémon with a charm on its head. The man had blue-purple hair that went down to his neck, green eyes, and was holding a rose. The woman had long magenta hair that was styled so that it curved back and downwards and blue eyes.

"Jessie," said the woman.

"James," said the man.

"Team Rocket Blasts off at the speed of light," said the one identified as Jessie.

"Surrender now or prepare to fight," said the one identified as James.

"Meowth, that's right," said that cat Pokémon.

That threw the group for a bit, they've never met a Pokémon that could actually communicate in the human speech before. Leaf decided to scan it with her Pokédex.

 _Meowth, the Scratch Cat Pokémon. A Normal Type. It loves things that sparkle. When it sees a shiny object, the gold coin on its head shines too."_

They all knew Meowth don't normally speak the same way humans do, but there was no denying that it _was_ a Meowth, but that wasn't the biggest thing on their minds right now.

"Hey, I saw you guys on a wanted poster outside of the city," said Leaf. "You guys are the thieves that have been going around lately."

"My, my, aren't you a clever little girl," said Jessie.

"And we're here to steal all the Pokémon here," said James.

"I'm not letting you take Pikachu," Ash declared.  
"Oh please, like we would be interested in a pathetic little rodent," said the man.

"But that Pokémon on your shoulder sure looks int'resting," said the Meowth.

"Ekans, go get it," the woman ordered. The Snake Pokémon obeyed and moved swiftly towards Ash and Froakie.

"Froakie, do your thing," said Ash.

Froakie nodded and jumped off Ash's shoulders. He took some Frubbles from his back and threw them into Ekans' mouth, making him fall to the floor.

"Come on, let's go," Ash shouted as he, Froakie, and the girls went through the double doors behind the counter.

"What's going on?" Nurse Joy asked.

"Team Rocket's here, their trying to steal the Pokémon," said Daisy.

"Oh my," said the nurse. "Chansey, we need to transfer all the Pokémon to the Pewter City Pokémon Center."

Chansey gave an acknowledging cry and went down the hall.

"What about Pikachu?" Ash asked.

"He's still in recovery, follow me."

Suddenly, the doors swung open as Koffing broke through.

"You guys go, I'll hold them off," said Misty.

Ash and Daisy nodded and went to follow nurse joy.

"I'll lend you a hand," said Leaf, releasing Florian from his Pokéball and he took a fighting stance.

Ekans, Jessie, James, and Meowth soon followed, the Snake Pokémon no longer having the sticky substance in its mouth.

"You two think you can stop us?" Jessie said confidently.

"We can try," said Misty. "Misty calls, Goldeen." Misty tossed her Pokéball and a white fish with a horn on its head and an orange underbelly started to flop around on the floor. Everyone was a bit dumbfounded by Misty's choice, did she have some kind of strategy or was she all bark and no bite. Leaf noticed that Team Rocket was perplexed as well and decided to take advantage of the situation.

"Goldeen, return," said Misty as the fish was absorbed back into the ball.

"Was that supposed to scare us?" James snarked, coming out of his dumbfounded state.

"No, but it did distract you," said Misty.

Before the villains could piece together what the redhead meant, Florian let out a vine whip attack that knocked them back.

"Great timing," said Misty.

"Thanks for giving me the opportunity," Leaf replied.

* * *

Back in the operating room, Chansey and Nurse Joy were continuously putting Pokéballs in the Item Transport Machine, ITM for short, to get the Pokéballs to Pewter City as fast as possible. Meanwhile, Ash was checking in on Pikachu, who was getting a recharge by a bunch of other Pikachu.

"Hang in there buddy," Ash whispered.

Froakie was also concerned. He didn't want Pikachu to be taken by some thugs, he owed him both his and Ash's life for what happened earlier.

Almost as if he were hearing their prayers, Pikachu slowly opened his eyes. Ash and Froakie noticed this and were immediately relieved.

"Pikachu, you're okay," Ash exclaimed.

Pikachu took a moment to get his bearings, he remembered getting to the nearest City but that was it. He looked around and noticed the strange room he was in. He assumed they were in the Pokémon Center.

"Pikachu, can you fight?" Ash asked.

Confused by his trainer's question, the electric mouse nodded. He wasn't at full strength, but he could put up a fight.

"Good, because we might need your help."

"I've already called Officer Jenny," said Daisy.

"Great, she'll be able to take care of these guys," said Ash.

"I've almost got all the Pokémon to safety," said Nurse Joy.

"Alright, let's go help Leaf and Misty," said Ash.

"That won't be necessary," said another voice.

Everyone turned to see Team Rocket standing in the doorway with both Leaf and Misty's Pokéballs in their hands. Leaf and Misty themselves were wrapped up by Ekans.

"Make any sudden moves, or I'll have Ekans squeeze these two like grapes," said Jessie threateningly.

The group stiffened and decided to stand down to make sure the girls didn't get hurt. They needed a way out of this situation and fast. Froakie turned to Pikachu and quietly asked him if he could short out the room's electricity. Pikachu nodded and let out a small shock that blew out all the lights in the room.

"Huh, what's going on?" Meowth asked.

"Pikachu was in recovery, it must have drained all the power," Ash lied. He had a pretty good idea this was Froakie's idea, and he was all for it.

"Alright, then have that little blue friend of yours come to the middle of the floor with all your other Pokémon," said James.

"Or else," Jessie finished, gesturing to Leaf and Misty.

Ash nodded and had Daisy hand her Pokéball to Froakie. She complied and Froakie made his way to the center of the floor. Though it was still hard to see, Team Rocket could still tell they were complying. Froakie appeared to put three Pokéballs down on the floor and then remained perfectly still himself.

"Alright, we'll just take our prizes and be on our way," said Jessie as she, James, and Meowth came to grab Froakie and the Pokéballs, putting Misty and Leaf's on their belts.

However, once they touched them, something felt off. The Pokéballs and the Pokémon felt soft, squishy, and sticky. They then realized that both "Froakie" and the "Pokéballs" were decoys. The real Froakie then snatched Leaf and Misty's Pokéballs from the thieves' belts and used cut on Ekans to loosen its grip on the girls.

Hearing the commotion, Ash knew it was time to take action.

"Alright guys, let's get out of here."

Nurse Joy and the four trainers ran out of the room and down the hall with their Pokémon right behind them. They were about to make it to the exit until they were stopped by Koffing. They turned around to see the rest of Team Rocket cornering them.

"You kids are really starting to annoy me," said Jessie.

"And for that, we're taking all of your Pokémon," said James.

"You're not getting Froakie or Pikachu," Ash shouted.

Froakie jumped behind Koffing and knocked him back towards Team Rocket. Ash decided he's had enough of those three, and Pikachu agreed, jumping in front of him in a fighting stance. Ash suddenly felt a rush of energy course through him, he didn't know what it was but he paid it no mind. Pikachu felt strange as well, like he was at full power, maybe a little more, and he was ready to dish it out to these guys.

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt," Ash ordered.

Pikachu obeyed and unleashed a powerful Thunderbolt, stronger than the one he unleashed on the Spearow, and made a direct hit on the villainous group, launching them up in the air and through the roof.

"Looks like Team Rocket is blasting off!" The trio shouted as they flew through the sky.

* * *

Officer Jenny arrived a bit later and got the entire story from Ash, Leaf, Daisy, Misty, and Nurse Joy. She thanked them for their but to be a careful as those three were still out there. They all agreed as they stayed in the Pokémon Center for free as thanks. The next day, they felt refreshed and ready to go.

"Alright, let's get to Pewter City so we can all see Serena again," Leaf said enthusiastically.

"And then I'll earn my first Gym Badge," Ash declared.

"Oh you two," said Daisy, being used to their enthusiastic behavior. She swore that they were siblings sometimes.

They made their way out of the city but something felt strange, almost as if they were being followed. They turned around to see Misty standing right behind them.

"What's up, Misty?" Ash asked.

The Redhead in question raised her hand and pointed it at Ash. "You still owe me a bike," she said. "So I'm going to stick around until you pay me back."

The group groaned in unison. This girl still wasn't letting that go?

"Seriously!?" Leaf exclaimed. "It's just a dumb bike."

"It cost $5,000!" She exclaimed.

Froakie and Pikachu let out a sigh. This was going to be a long journey.

* * *

Meanwhile, in a Meowth shaped balloon, Team Rocket was recovering from their encounter with Ash and his friends. Their mind was all on one thing, the boy's Pikachu and Froakie.

"That Pikachu is quite powerful," said Jessie.

"And that blue frog was quite sneaky," James added.

"We should capture them and bring them to da boss," said Meowth.

"Exactly," said Jessie. "With Pokémon like that."

"Team Rocket can achieve its ultimate goal," James added.

"Of world domination!" The three shouted in unison.

* * *

 **And there is Chapter 5. Yes Team Rocket will still be an annoyance, but they'll only have Kalos level interactions, which means frequent, but not every episode. They will also stop showing up around the end of the Johto Arc, not saying how, but they will. Also, I know I said I wouldn't have Ash discover his aura right away, but this is one of the only times we see it in this arc. A little snippet if you will. I still won't be focusing on it so much this arc. Serena is going to reunite with the gang in Pewter City instead so you'll have to wait for a little longer folks, but take heed in knowing that Leaf and Daisy will be in Ash's group until Pewter City, then go their separate ways. I'm also going to add another Chapter of Serena in Kalos before the big reunion. So look forward to the next few chapters.**

 **Next Chapter: Into Viridian Forest**


	6. Into Viridian Forest

**Chapter 6 - Into Viridian Forest**

 **Okay into Viridian Forest we go! Time for Ash to catch a Caterpie and Pidgeotto and for Misty to scream like a little girl (no offense to any Misty fans). So, let the journey continue!**

 **I do not own Pokémon!**

* * *

It was another fine day in the Kanto Region. Ash, Leaf, and Daisy were walking through Viridian Forest in order to get to Pewter City to reunite with their old friend Serena and so Ash can win his first Kanto Gym Badge, Pikachu and Froakie perched on Ash's shoulders; however, they have an unexpected fourth member, who was making it very difficult to traverse the dense forest.

"Eeeekkkk!" Misty screamed for the fifth time since entering the forest.

"What is it now, Misty?" Ash asked annoyingly. All of their progress was being slowed down because the tomboyish redhead was afraid of Bug-type Pokémon.

"There's a bug," said a frightened Misty.

The three Pallet Town Natives turned to see a green, worm-like Pokémon.

"Cool, it's a Caterpie," Ash said excitedly as he took out his Pokédex.

" _Caterpie, the Worm Pokémon. A Bug Type. If you touch the feeler on top of its head, it will release a horrible stink to protect itself."_

"Don't just stand there, get it away from me," Misty screeched.

"Come on Misty, it's just a Caterpie," said Leaf.

"Bugs really bug me," the redhead retorted, inching away from the Bug-Type and quickly dashed behind the rest of the group.

"I'm gonna catch it," Ash declared.

"What!?" Misty exclaimed, though no one listened to her.

Pikachu jumped off Ash's shoulder and took a fighting stance.

This caught Ash and Froakie off guard. "Pikachu, you want to help?" Ash asked.

Pikachu nodded in response. After the Spearow attack and the incident at the Pokémon Center, Pikachu could tell this kid was already different from previous trainers he had. While he still didn't have his full trust, Pikachu was willing to give the boy a chance.

"Alright, then let's do this," Ash said with a smile. "Pikachu, use Agility."

The yellow mouse followed the command and charged at Caterpie with amazing speed and hit the Worm Pokémon head on. Caterpie retorted by launching a Tackle Attack.

"Dodge it," said Ash. Pikachu compiled and jumped out of the way.

"Alright, now use Thunderbolt," Ash ordered.

Pikachu compiled and let out a powerful electric charge at the Bug-Type Pokémon, it wasn't as powerful as the ones Pikachu used on the Spearow or Team Rocket, but it was enough to hurt Caterpie, knocking it out.

"Alright, go pokéball," said Ash as he flipped his hat backward and tossed an empty pokéball at Caterpie. It hit the unconscious Caterpie and it was converted into light as it entered the round device. The pokébball wiggled once, twice, thrice, and then it clicked, indicating the Pokémon was caught.

Ash couldn't help the huge smile forming on his face. He did it, he caught his first Pokémon. He excitedly went over and picked up the pokéball with his new Pokémon inside.

"Alright, I caught a Caterpie!" Ash exclaimed as he spun around and held the pokéball right in front of him with his other arm clenched in excitement. Pikachu and Froakie joined in, sharing their trainer's excitement.

"That pose still looks ridiculous," Leaf said coldly.

"Don't ruin the moment," Ash retorted.

"Still, congratulations Ash," said Daisy.

"Thanks, Daisy," said Ash. He then looked back at the pokéball in his hand. "Hey guys, why don't we say hello to our new team member?"

Both Froakie and Pikachu nodded. Ash smiled as he tossed Caterpie's Pokéball in the air. The device opened up and Caterpie emerged.

"Hey there Caterpie," Ash said, getting down on his knees to get closer. "My name is Ash Ketchum, I'm sure we can become great friends."

Caterpie gave a happy cry in response. If he was being honest, Caterpie was glad he was caught. That meant it wouldn't be hunted as much. Maybe it'll finally evolve into a Butterfree.

"Now, let's see what you've got," Ash said as he took out his Pokédex.

" _This Caterpie is male and knows Tackle and String Shot."_

"Alright, let's introduce you to the others," said Ash. "You already know Pikachu."

Said Pokémon waved and apologized, which Caterpie happily accepted.

"This is my good friend Froakie." The Bubble frog Pokémon waved.

"Those two are Leaf and Daisy."

"Hello," Daisy greeted.

"Hey," said Leaf.

"And this is Misty the Fraidy Meowth," Ash said as he held Caterpie in front of the redhead.

Misty stiffened at how close Caterpie was, not sure what she should do. Caterpie gave her a happy look leaned in closer, it kind of looked like he was giving her a kiss on the nose. While everyone else thought the gesture was cute, Misty didn't; she immediately panicked and ran behind a tree. The outburst surprised the Worm Pokémon and made it feel sad.

"Hey, that wasn't very nice Misty," Ash said angrily. "Apologize to him right now."

"I will not," Misty shouted. "He's a disgusting bug and I HATE BUGS!"

This caused Caterpie to be even sadder.

"Not cool Misty," said Daisy. This made Caterpie cheer up a little, knowing the others were defending him.

"Seriously, there is nothing more embarrassing than being scared of a Pokémon," said Leaf. She then felt something furry brush against her leg. She looked down and saw a rat with purple fur, red eyes, and a long tail that was curled up at the end. Leaf immediately recognized it and her face paled for a moment before letting out a screech and running to the same tree Misty was hiding behind.

"Hypocrite," Misty snarked.

"Shut up, Rattatas freak me out," Leaf retorted.

Ash, Daisy, and Froakie sighed at the scene. Leaf had always hated Rattatas and Raticate. Whenever she saw one, she would panic and hide. Daisy decided to scan it with her Pokédex

" _Rattata, the Mouse Pokémon. A Normal Type. Ratta is cautious in the extreme. Even while it is asleep, it constantly listens by moving its ears around. It is not picky about where it lives - it will make its nest anywhere."_

"I didn't think Rattata lived in Viridian Forest," said Ash.

"It must have been separated from its nest," said Daisy. She looked closely at the purple rodent and came to a conclusion. "I'm going to catch it."

"You're going to what now!?" Leaf asked in disbelief.

"If I want to be a researcher like my grandfather, I need to observe various different kinds of Pokémon," Daisy explained.

"Edan, I need your help." Daisy tossed her pokéball in the air and let her Charmander out and he took a fighting stance.

"Okay Edan, use Scratch," Daisy commanded.

Edan followed the orders and struck the Mouse Pokémon with his claws. The Rattata retorted by swinging his tail at the Charmander. The Tail Whip only threw Edan off a bit and didn't cause any damage.

"Use Ember," Daisy ordered.

The Lizard Pokémon obeyed and launched tiny specks of flame from his mouth that hit the Rattata, making it weaker.

"Alright, time to catch it." Daisy grabbed an empty pokéball and threw it at Rattata. It was able to hit the weakened Pokémon and absorb it inside. It wiggled once, twice, thrice, and then it clicked.

"Alright Daisy, you caught it," said Ash. The other Pokémon giving the young Oak equal praise.

"Thanks, guys," said Daisy. She went over to her pokéball and scanned it with her Pokédex.

" _This Rattata is male and knows Tackle, Tail Whip, Quick Attack, and Bite."_

Daisy smiled and released her new Pokémon. Once Rattata was released, he turned towards his new trainer.

"Hey there, my name is Daisy," said the young girl. "I'm sorry about attacking you so suddenly. I hope we can be friends."

The purple rat looked at his new trainer and gave a happy reply. Truth be told, he has been separated from his nest a while ago and was getting lonely, at least with a trainer, he would have a few friends.

"Great," Daisy smiled. "I think I'll call you Ricky."

"Just keep that thing away from me," said Leaf, still cowering behind the tree with Misty.

"Con on you two, Caterpie and Ricky won't hurt you," said Ash. They then heard a loud growl come from Leaf's stomach, then Ash's.

"Looks like it's time for lunch," said Daisy as Ash and Leaf chuckled nervously. "Ash, why don't you, Leaf, and Misty help set up the area while I and Edan get the food ready."

"Sure thing," said Ash. Daisy smiled as she and her two Pokémon went to her bag as she took out some ingredients a small pot.

Ash turned to his two cowering female companions and said, "Come on you two, stop hiding and lend me a hand."

"Alright, alright, I'm coming," said Leaf as she slowly came out of her hiding place. She reached into her bag and took out a large picnic blanket and gave one of the ends to Ash and another to Froakie.

"You too, Misty," Ash said firmly.

"Are you sure?" said Misty, still not wanting to get close to the Bug-type Pokémon.

"If you're going to keep following me until I pay you back for that stupid bike, you might as well help out," Ash said.

"I-I guess that's fair," said Misty.

She slowly came out from behind the tree and took hold of the fourth corner of the blanket. They then started to spread out the blanket and laid it out on the ground. Leaf had let out Florian and he helped lay out the bowls for Pokémon and human food along the blanket. After about half an hour, Daisy came with a pot now full of soup and poured it into the human bowls and Ash started putting some Pokémon food his mom had bought in the other bowls. After everyone was given a spoon they began eating.

"This is actually pretty good," said Misty after taking two bites.

"Thank you, Misty," said Daisy. "I knew cooking would come in hand as a trainer so I learned very early on."

"Let's just hope Serena knows how to cook, otherwise you two are doomed," Leaf said jokingly towards Ash and Misty.

"Hey, my cooking isn't that bad," said Ash, trying to defend himself.

Daisy, Leaf, and Froakie all gave him looks of disbelief. They had tried Ash cooking before when they were younger. They were hanging out at Delia's restaurant and the woman herself was out getting groceries. They were starting to get hungry so Ash offered to make them something. "If Mom can do it, so can I," he said. What he had made was not only unsightly, it tasted downright awful. Ash hadn't at all tried to make a second attempt at cooking since then, even after Daisy got him "Cooking for Dummies."

Ash looked at their faces and admitted, "Okay maybe it is."

"Wait, who's Serena?" the redhead asked.

"She's a friend of our's from the Kalos region," Daisy explained. "We all met at a summer camp when we were little and we've stayed in contact ever since."

"She also just started her journey and she's coming back to Kanto to travel with Ash," said Leaf.

"What is she, his girlfriend or something?"

Ash started choking on his food at the comment due to shock.

"N-no, w-we're just good friends," said Ash trying to clear his throat. Ash found the idea very silly, he and Serena weren't like that at all. Besides, Serena would probably find someone a lot better than him.

Meanwhile, Froakie, Leaf, and Daisy began to burst into laughter. Leaf gestured for Misty to come closer as she started to calm down. Misty was confused but obliged. "Actually, Serena does have a little crush on Ash," the brunette whispered. Misty mouthed an "oh" and leaned back with a smirk on her face.

* * *

The embarrassment didn't end there, however. Once everyone finished their meal, Ash's Holo Caster started to buzz. He picked it up and saw it was Serena who was calling.

"Hey Serena," Ash said as he answered the device and Serena's hologram appeared.

"Hey Ash, how's it going?" She asked.

"Well… we are in Viridian Forest right now and we just finished lunch."

"Oh, that's great! I'm actually at a Pokémon Center on Route 4, so I'll be there soon."

"Great," Ash said excitedly.

"Oh, talking to your girlfriend?" Misty shouted as she helped pack up.

"Shut up," Ash shouted, his face flushed red. He turned back to see Serena covering her cheeks with her hair.

"A-Ash, who was that?" the honey-blonde asked.

"That was Misty, the girl I BORROWED THE BIKE FROM," Ash shouted that last part towards the said individual. "She claims that I owe her for wrecking her bike, so she's going to be on my tail until I pay her back and no matter what I do, she won't leave me alone."

"So it won't be just the two of us anymore?" Serena asked. Ash nodded. She seemed to be disappointed by that fact but she didn't seem to show it for long.

"Well I guess it can't be helped," she sighed. "Oh and Ash, I read what happened at the Pokémon Center at Viridian City." Ash gulped, he was hoping he wouldn't have to tell her about that.

"I'm fine Serena, I was able to send those goons packing," said the raven-haired trainer. "Besides, I wasn't going to just stand by and do nothing."

"I know, that's just the kind of person you are," said Serena. "Though, I don't think I'm in a position to criticize you on that right now."

"What do you mean?" Suddenly a Pokémon the size of Serena's head jumped on her shoulder. It had a grey head with yellow, square-ish eyes, and seemed to be covered in a white cloak with red, yellow, and black squares.

"What is that?" Ash asked.

"It's a Spewpa, I found it as a Scatterbug that came off a poacher's truck as it zoomed right past me."

"Are you okay," Ash asked in concern.

"I'm fine, but I am going to help Officer Jenny help catch the poacher," said Serena.

"Really, but won't you…" he was about to ask if she'll be late for her flight when he heard a scream. He turned around to see a giant bird Pokémon attacking Caterpie. It looked similar to Pidgey ut it was bigger and had long, pink feathers flowing from its head.

"Sorry Serena, I'll talk to you later," said the Pallet native as he hung up the device and went over to help his newly caught Pokémon.

Caterpie was trying his best to get away from the large bird but speed wasn't one of its strong suits, but he kept on running. The large bird was about to go in for another strike but Froakie was able to get Caterpie out of the way in time.

As the bird flew up for another strike, Ash decided to scan it.

" _Pidgeotto, the Bird Pokémon and the evolved form of Pidgey. A Normal/Flying Type. This Pokémon is full of vitality. It constantly flies around its large territory in search of prey."_

"I guess that Pidgeotto thinks Caterpie is lunch," said Leaf.

Once Froakie got Caterpie to safety, he turned back to Pidgeotto with an angry look. No one blindly attacks his teammates and gets away with it. He was about to make a jump to reach the flying-type when he heard his name.

"Froakie wait," Ash cried, stopping the Water-type's actions. "If you jump in without a plan it will be pretty bad, just like with the Spearows."

Froakie's eyes widened at the realization. Ash was right, his brashness is what started the Spearow to attack in the first place, all because he wanted to prove that Ash was a competent trainer to Pikachu.

"Besides, Pidgeotto is too high up to reach," Ash pointed out.

"So what are you going to do?" Daisy asked.

"Easy," Ash smiled. "Froakie, Pikachu, Caterpie, let's go deeper into the forest."

The three Pokémon nodded and followed Ash into the forest, Caterpie climbing onto Froakie's back.

Pidgeotto just watched as the human with black hair, Pikachu, and Froakie take its lunch into the dense forest. It would have to swoop down lower to try and find them. So it did and began searching for its prey. It soon spotted a Caterpie shaped figure hanging from one of the branches on a string. It turned towards its target and got ready to snatch it with its talons; however, upon making contact, the Pidgeotto realized it was not an actual Caterpie, but a decoy made of some sticky substance and it couldn't break free.

"Alright, we got it," the raven-haired boy yelled, emerging from the bushes along with the other Pokémon.

"Now to catch it," the boy declared. "Caterpie, use Tackle. Froakie, use Cut. Pikachu, use Agility."

Caterpie jumped up and hit the Bird Pokémon with his body, then Froakie drew a small blade that formed in his hand and struck as well, and finally, Pikachu hit Pidgeotto at alarming speeds that were more like a Quick Attack than agility.

"Awesome Pikachu, you just learned Quick Attack," Ash praised.

Pikachu gave his trainer a happy reply. He was starting to warm up to this kid.

"Alright, Caterpie, use tackle one more time to knock it out, you deserve it," said Ash.

Caterpie nodded and hit the Bird Pokémon once more, knocking it out."

"Alright, go Pokéball!" Ash threw an empty pokéball at Pidgeotto and it was absorbed into upon contact. The ball wiggled three times before it clicked.

"Alright, I got a Pidgeotto!" Ash shouted as he picked up the round device. The rest of his Pokémon joined in on the celebration. Ash then took out his Pokédex to get some more info on his latest catch.

" _This Pidgeotto is female and knows Gust, Sand Attack, Quick Attack, and Whirlwind. Pikachu has forgotten Agility and learned Quick Attack."_

"Oh cool, it also tells you when you guys have learned a new move," Ash commented.

Ash leaned down to Caterpie and patted his head.

"Great job Caterpie, I couldn't have done it without you."

The Worm Pokémon gave a happy reply when it started to glow. Ash backed off in shock and then watched in amazement as Caterpie's form began to change. It grew slightly larger and took a more crescent shape. The glow dispersed and Caterpie now looked like a green cocoon with yellow eyes.

"Wow, you evolved into Metapod," Ash praised as he took out his Pokédex.

" _Metapod, the Cocoon Pokémon and the evolved form of Caterpie. A Bug Type. The shell covering this Pokémon's body is as hard as an iron slab. Metapod does not move very much. It stays still because it is preparing its soft innards for evolution inside the hard shell. This Metapod knows Tackle, String Shot, and Harden."_

"Congratulations Metapod," said Ash. "You'll be a Butterfree in no time."

Metapod gave a happy cry in response. He couldn't wait to be a Butterfree.

"Alright, let's head back to the others." The rest of Ash's Pokémon nodded.

"Uh, do any of you know which way that is?"

This caused his Pokémon to falter. How can their trainer be so good when it comes to battling, but terrible at directions?

Fortunately, Froakie anticipated this and hopped on his shoulder and pointed to some trees with some slash marks on them.

"Oh, you marked the way back. Thanks, Froakie."

Froakie gave Ash a small reply as a way of saying "you're welcome."

* * *

Back at the clearing, the girls were just about done cleaning up the picnic area. As Daisy was putting the blanket away, he noticed Ash come out of the forest, his Pokémon in tow.

"Welcome back Ash," said the young Oak. "Did you get Pidgeotto?"

"Yep, I got her right here," Ash said as he held up Pidgeotto's Pokéball. "Not only that, but Caterpie evolved into Metapod."

"Wow, congrats," said Leaf. "But seriously, you caught two Pokémon in one day. I'm kind of jealous."

"Well, I **am** going to be a great Pokémon Master," Ash boasted. "By the way, where's Misty?"

"Behind that tree," Leaf said as she pointed behind her. Sure enough, Misty was hiding behind the tree with a terrified look on her face.

"Why is she hiding over there," Ash asked. "I put Metapod in his Pokéall."

"That would be because of _my_ newest catch," Leaf boasted as a small brown worm-like Pokémon with a pink nose and a spike on its head and tiny black eyes.

"This is Spike, my new Weedle. Isn't he adorable." Leaf said that last part towards Misty in a teasing manner. Misty just shrunk behind the tree.

Ash took out his Pokédex and scanned Leaf's Pokémon.

" _Weedle, the Hairy Bug Pokémon. A Bug/Poison Type. Beware of the sharp stinger on its head. It hides in the grass and bushes where it eats leaves."_

"Great job Leaf," Ash said.

"Yeah great job you two, now put that thing away," Misty shouted in exasperation.

Leaf let out a huge sigh as she returned Spike to his Pokéball.

"Alright, let's get going," said Daisy.

Meanwhile, in the bushes, three pairs of eyes were watching them.

* * *

The four of them had slowly made their way through Viridian Forest. Misty causing most of the delay, screaming and hiding behind either a tree or Daisy whenever she saw a bug type Pokémon. Quite frankly, it was getting annoying.

As they were walking by, a boy wearing a samurai helmet and armor with a bug net on his back jumped out in front of them and pointed a sword at them. Of course, everyone was frightened by this and backed away while Pikachu and Froakie took a defensive position, getting ready to attack.

"Tell me, are any of you from the town of Pallet?" The boy asked.

"They are, I'm not," Misty answered quickly.

"Why do you want to know?" Ash asked back.

"A boy who said he was from your town challenged me to a battle and defeated me," the boy explained. "He said I could never hope to defeat a trainer from Pallet Town."

"Gary," the three Pallet Town natives thought.

"So I must defeat you in order to restore my honor," said the boy.

"If you wanted to challenge us to a Pokémon battle, you should have just said so," said Ash.

"Yeah, there was no need to draw a sword on us," said Leaf.

"Oh, the sword is just for theatrics," the boy said as he sheathed his sword. "My name is Samurai, and I would like to challenge the oy first."

"Alright, my name is Ash Ketchum and a gladly accept your challenge," Ash replied confidently. "How about we each have a one on one battle so you have a chance of battling all three of us?"

"An excellent idea," replied Samurai. He then turned to Misty and asked, "Excuse me miss, but would you mind being the referee?"

"Huh? Oh, sure," the redhead replied as she stood on a tree stump. Ash and Samurai took their positions.

Misty cleared her throat before saying, "This will be a one on one battle between Ash Ketchum of Pallet Town and Samurai of Viridian Forest. The battle will be over once one or both Pokémon are unable to battle. Please select your Pokémon."

"I will start off with a Pokémon I just caught," said Samurai as he grabbed his first pokéball. "Go Metapod." He tossed the Pokéball and a Metapod similar to Ash's was released. Misty freaked out a little when she saw it but regained her composure.

"Wait, did you say you just caught that Metapod?" Ash asked.

"Yes, why?" Samurai replied.

Ash decided to say nothing since this could be used to his advantage.

"Alright, then I'll use my own Metapod," Ash said as he released Metapod from his pokéball.

Misty gulped before saying, "Alright, Metapod vs Metapod, begin"

"Metapod, use Harden," Samurai ordered.

Samurai's Metapod followed the command as it's shell began to glow for a brief moment.

"He's raised Metapod's defense," Daisy commented.

"Too bad that's the only move it knows," said Leaf.

It was actually a pretty well-known fact that mist Metapod caught in the wild only knew harden. It would only know other moves if it was caught as a Caterpie like Ash's Metapod.

"Alright, then we'll use Harden as well," said Ash.

Ash's Metapod followed the command and did the same thing the other Metapod did.

"Use Harden again," Samurai ordered. Samurai's Metapod obeyed and glowed again.

"You too, Metapod," Ash ordered. Ash's Metapod did the exact same.

This cycled back and forth between the two trainers for quite a while and the battle eventually got boring. After a while, Ash started feeling a little bored too.

"Alright, I think that's enough messing around," he said. "Metapod, use tackle repeatedly."

Ash's Metapod followed the command and began hitting the other Cocoon Pokémon with his body multiple times. This snapped everyone from the little nap they were having and began to watch as Ash's Metapod hit the other. Eventually, Samurai's Metapod fell on its side and looked completely out cold.

"Samurai's Metapod is unable to battle," Misty called. "Ash's Metapod wins. The victory goes to Ash Ketchum."

"Alright, we won," Ash cheered with Metapod joining in.

"But, how did I lose?" Samurai asked.

"Metapod caught in the wild only know Harden and not any physical attacks," Ash explained. "I caught mine as a Caterpie, so it already knew other moves."

"I see, thank you for the excellent battle, Ash-san," said Samurai as he bowed in respect.

"Same to you," Ash bowed back. Samurai his Metapod to its pokéball while Ash decided to keep Metapod out so he could watch the other battles.

"Alright, it's my turn now," said Leaf as she got a Pokéball ready. "The name's Leaf by the way. Leaf Green."

"Very well, let us begin," said Samurai as he returned to his spot. He reached for another Pokéball and tossed it in the air.

"Pinsir, Prepare for battle."

The ball opened and a tall Pokémon with a very intimidating face and large pincers on its head appeared. Leaf took out her Pokédex to scan it.

" _Pinsir, the Stag Beetle Pokémon. A Bug Type. It_ _Grips its prey in its pincers and squeezes hard! It can't move if it's cold, so it lives in warm places."_

"Another Bug Type, seriously?" Misty muttered.

"Alrighty then," said Leaf as she tossed her own pokéball. "Go Spike."

Leaf's Weedle was released and took a defensive position.

"Ha, there is no way a little Weedle can beat my Pinsir," Samurai boasted.

"We'll see," Leaf replied.

"Alright, Samurai's Pinsir vs Spike, Leaf's Weedle," Misty shouted. "Begin."

"Pinsir, use Vice Grip," ordered Samurai.

Pinsir obeyed and charged at Spike to try and get it trapped in its huge pincers.

"Spike, jump out of the way and use String Shot on its pincers," Leaf ordered.

Spike was able to comply and avoided the giant bug's grip. Pinsir's pincers still closed and Spike took advantage and launched the String Shot to tie them up.

"Alright, now use Poison Sting," said Leaf.

Spike obeyed and shot a small dart at Pinsir. Pinsir began to look pale, indicating it was poisoned.

"Pinsir, break free and use Bind," said Samurai.

Pinsir easily broke the webbing on its pincers and tried to grab Spike again and try to hold on this time.

"Spike, use Poison Sting again," said Leaf.

Spike launched another dart and hit Pinsir again. With another dose of poison in its system, Pinsir fell unconscious on the ground.

"Pinsir is unable to battle, Spike wins," Misty shouted. "The winner is Leaf Green."

"Yes, way to go, Spike," Leaf cheered.

Spike also looked cheerful and happy. Suddenly he began to glow and change shape. Once the glowing stopped, Spike now looked like Metapod except it was straight and jagged with a yellow shell and big, black eyes.

"Wow! Spike, you evolved," said Leaf. She took out her Pokédex to get an update on her Pokémon.

" _Kakuna, the Cocoon Pokémon, and the evolved form of Weedle. A Bug/Poison Type. Able to move only slightly. When endangered, it may stick out its stinger and poison its enemy. This Kakuna knows Poison Sting, String Shot, and Harden."_

"Congratulations, Leaf-san," said Samurai as he returned his own Kakuna. "And thank you for the battle."

"Sure, no problem," said Leaf.

"I guess it's my turn," said Daisy as she took Leaf's spot.

"And what would your name be, miss?" Samurai asked.

"Daisy, Daisy Oak," she replied. "And I apologize for my brother's behavior."

"Your brother?" Samurai pondered. "You mean the first Pallet Town trainer I faced?"

"Yes, I'm terribly sorry, he has a bit of an ego."

"It is no trouble, Daisy-san," said Samurai. "But I still have to restore my honor. Go, Paras."

Samurai threw his Pokéball in the air and released a small, orange Pokémon with small claws, beady blue eyes, and two red mushrooms with yellow spots on its back. Misty freaked a little at the sight of another bug while the three Pallet trainers took out their Pokédex's to scan it.

" _Paras, the Mushroom Pokémon. A Bug/Grass Type. It burrows underground to gnaw on tree roots. The mushrooms on its back store most of the nutrients."_

"You can't find those in Viridian Forest," Daisy commented.

"No, I got it at Mt. Moon when I went on a little camping trip there," Samurai explained.

"Alright, then I choose, Edan," said Daisy as she released her starter from his pokéball.

"Alright, Samurai's Paras vs Edan, Daisy's Charmander," Misty called. "Begin."

"Paras, use Stun Spore."

Paras obeyed and released a bunch of yellow powder from the mushrooms on its back that made its way towards Edan. Once Edan got a whiff of the spores, he suddenly felt his limbs become a little numb.

"Oh no, he's becoming paralyzed," Daisy thought.

"Edan, use Ember," she shouted.

Using all the strength he could muster, Edan was able to successfully launch small flames out of his mouth and towards Paras.

"Dodge it," Samurai shouted.

Paras obeyed and jumped to the side receiving only a tiny amount of the original attack.

"Use Ember again," said Daisy.

Edan did as he was told and was still able to perform the attack and was actually able to hit Paras.

"Use Scratch," Samurai ordered.

Paras moved closer to Edan and slashed at him using its claws.

"Try to use Scratch too," said Daisy.

Edan obeyed and was able to perform the attack.

"Use Scratch again," said Samurai.

Paras then got ready for another attack.

"Dodge it," Daisy called out.

Edan tried to, ut the effects of the Stun Spore had taken full effect. He could hardly move. But he really didn't want to let Daisy down. He decided to open his mouth to launch another Ember instead, but smoke had come out instead and it completely surrounded him. This caught Paras off guard and stopped its attack.

"What just happened," asked Daisy, also surprised by the smoke. She suddenly got an alert from her Pokédex.

" _Your Charmander now knows Scratch, Growl, Ember, and Smokescreen."_

"So that's it, you learned a new move," said Daisy. "Now use Ember."

Edan took advantage of Paras' confusion and launched a successful ember attack that hit Paras dead on. Once the smoke cleared, Paras was unconscious.

"Paras is unable to battle, Edan wins," said Misty. "Daisy is the winner."

Daisy ran over to Edan and placed a reassuring hand on his bike while she got out a Paralyze Heal.

"You did a great job, Edan," she said as she applied the Heal. The Charmander gave her a happy reply.

"It seems your brother was right," Samurai said in defeat. "I will never be able to defeat a trainer from Pallet Town."

"Don't say that," said Daisy. "I'm sure you can be a great trainer someday. Just keep practicing."

"Besides, Gary's a jerk," Leaf added.

"Thank you for the vote of confidence," said Samurai with a smile.

Froakie suddenly noticed a huge net was coming towards them and was able to cut it before it captured them. The others noticed this as well and looked in the direction the net came from.

"Who's there?" Ash called.

"Prepare for trouble, you owe us big," said a female voice.

"And make it double, you ruined our gig, said a male voice.

The same thugs from the Pokémon Center came out of the bushes.

"To protect the world from devastation," said Jessie.

"To unite all people within our nation," said James.

"To denounce the evils of truth and love."

"To extend our reach to the stars above."

"Jessie."

"James."

"Team Rocket blasts off at the speed of light."

"Surrender now, or prepare to fight."

"Meowth, that's right," said the feline Pokémon.

"You guys again?" said Leaf.

"You twerps owe us from our last encounter," said Jessie.

"So we'll be paying you back by taking your Pokémon," said James.

"Especially that blue frog and Pikachu," said Meowth. "A Pikachu that powerful and a Pokémon that stealthy would make an excellent addition to Team Rocket."

"Like we're going to let that happen," Ash said defensively.

"Besides, in case you didn't notice, you're totally outnumbered," said Leaf.

"Oh, we're not going to fight you," said Jessie.

"We'll let the natives handle you," said James as he tossed a rock into another area of the forest.

Emerging from the forest was a bunch of bee-like Pokémon with stingers on its arms and red eyes heading right for them. Daisy quickly got out her Pokédex.

" _Beedrill, the Poison Bee Pokémon, and the evolved form of Kakuna. A Bug/Poison Type._ _Beedrill is extremely territorial. No one should ever approach its nest—this is for their own safety. If angered, they will attack in a furious swarm."_

Everyone turned back to Team Rocket only to see them in a small tank to protect and hide them from the Beedrill. They said, "To-da-loo," before running away to safety, leaving everyone to deal with the Beedrill.

"We need to find shelter," said Misty in fear.

"For once, I agree with you," said Leaf, not wanting to deal with a whole swarm of Beedrill.

"My cabin is not too far from hear, we can take shelter there," said Samurai.

"First, we'll need to distract them," said Daisy. "Edan, Smokescreen."

Edan jumped in front of the group and released a large haze of smoke to hide from the Beedrill.

"Quickly, follow me," said Samurai as he ran into the forest, the other trainers and Pokémon following him.

They soon arrive at small cabin an quickly went inside and closed the door. The Beedrill swarm surrounded the house not long after but they were unable to get in. They all decided to relax and take a deep breath.

"Is everyone okay?" Samurai asked.

Everyone nodded in response. Ash and Leaf looked around and noticed that there were two faces missing.

"Ah, I forgot to get Metapod," Ash shouted.

"And left Spike behind too," said Leaf.

"What? Not even a simple novice would leave their Pokémon behind," Samurai shouted.

"We were in the heat of the moment, we just forgot," said Leaf.

"That is no excuse," said Samurai.

"Well we have to go out there and get them," said Ash.

"I know you mean well, but the Beedrill are still out there and still angry," said Misty.

"She's right, they'll calm down by sunset, we'll go get them then," said Samurai.

"We can't wait that long," said Ash. "A friend of ours is going to be arriving in Pewter City tomorrow and we all said we'd be there to greet her."

"I'm sure she'll understand if you're late," said Samurai. "But how do you plan to get passed all those Beedrill?"

"Actually, Florian learned Sleep Powder when I caught Spike," said Leaf.

"Great, we'll put all the Beedrill to sleep, and then we can go get Metapod and Spike and get out of Viridian Forest before they know we're gone," said Ash.

"Then let's do it," said Leaf. "Florian, come on out."

Leaf's Bulbasaur was released from his Pokéball and awaited his trainer's orders.

"Florian, can you use Sleep Powder on those Beedrill outside so we can go rescue Metapod and Spike?"

Florian nodded and went out the door. Once outside, the Beedrill noticed them and began to charge at him. Florian then lets out some green powder from his bud and it surrounded the area. Once the Beedrill smelled it, they all fell asleep and dropped down one by one. Everyone slowly got out with a handkerchief covering their noses and mouths, Froakie using his Frubbles.

"Good job Florian," Leaf whispered as her Bulbasaur gave a silent reply.

"Alright let's go," Ash whispered.

"Good luck," said Samurai, staying in the cabin.

They all quietly moved through the forest and found where they left Metapod and Spike, who was still being harassed by other Beedrill that hadn't been affected by the first Sleep Powder.

"Okay Florian, do it again."

Florian once again released the green powder and all the Beedrill fell asleep. The group then moved in to get Metapod and Spike and silently grabbed them.

"Alright, let's get out of here before they wake up," whispered Misty.

Everyone silently nodded and tried to get away from the Beedrill as quickly and quietly as possible. Once they got far enough away they resumed their normal pace.

"Well that was a close one," said Ash.

"I'll say," said Leaf. "If I see another wild Beedrill, it will be too soon."

Of course, as luck would have it, the group's troubles were far from over as they soon stumbled across a bunch of trees with Kakuna hanging off of them.

"It's a hive of Kakuna," Daisy whispered.

Suddenly the Kakuna started to glow.

"And it looks like their evolving," Ash whispered.

The shells of the wild Kakuna began to break as a new form came out. The glow died out and standing right in front of them was a new group of Beedrill, and they weren't happy with some random strangers in their territory.

"Run!" Misty screeched.

The others soon followed her lead and started running, the new swarm of Beedrill right on their tail. Metapod and Spike woke up from Florian's Sleep Powder and noticed the trouble their trainers were in trouble. As two of the Beedrill got close to them, Metapod and Spike used what limited mobility they had and jumped in the way of the Beedrills attack. Ash and Leaf stopped and went back for their Pokémon.

"Are you okay Metapod?"

"You alright Spike?"

They noticed that their shells were cracked. They thought that this was a bad thing since it could prove fatal to their Pokémon. Just when they were about to cry, Metapod and Spike started to glow. The cracks grew open a bit wider and a new shape came out of the shells. When the glowing stopped, Spike emerged as a Beedrill and Metapod had transformed into a butterfly-like Pokémon with big red eyes, a dark purple body, blue arms, and big, white wings. Both Ash and Leaf got out their Pokédex's.

" _Your Beedrill now knows Poison Sting, String Shot, Twineedle, and Fury Attack."_

" _Butterfree, the Butterfly Pokémon. A Bug/Flying Type. In battle, it flaps its wings at high speed to release highly toxic dust into the air. Your Butterfree now knows Sleep Powder, String Shot, Gust, and Confusion."_

"Alright, you guys evolved," said Ash.

"Congratulations," said Leaf.

Both Pokémon gave their trainers a happy reply as a thank you.

"Now let's show these Beedrill not to mess with us," said Ash as both Butterfree and Beedrill took a fighting position.

The Beedrill swarm moved in closer, not backing down.

"Spike, use Fury Attack," said Leaf.

Spike obeyed and made several jabs at the other Beedrill at an alarming speed.

"Butterfree, use Confusion," said Ash.

Butterfree followed the order and emitted psychic waves from his eyes, making the wild Beedrill confused and they started attacking and crashing into each other.

Both trainers heard a screech and turned to see Misty being backed against a tree by a bunch of other Beedrill, possibly the ones that were knocked out earlier.

"Spike, use Twineedle to thin them out."

"Butterfree, use Sleep Powder to take out the rest."

Spike moved in and started jabbing some of the Beedrill while Butterfree flew above them and started emitting green powder from his wings, making the rest of the Beedrill feel sleepy.

As the wild Beedrill fell down from the sky, Misty looked up at Spike and Butterfree.

"I guess, I owe you two an apology," she said. "Thanks for saving me."

"That's very kind of you Misty," said Daisy, to which the others agreed.

Butterfree was so happy that the girl who used to be freaked out by him thanking him, that he swooped down and tried to cuddle against her face. Misty started to freak out when Butterfree made contact, which made him sad again. The rest of the group just sighed.

"I guess she still afraid bugs," said Ash.

"I still think it's kind of lame," said Leaf.

Suddenly, Ricky's Pokéball opened up from Daisy's bag and he appeared on Leaf's leg. Leaf looked down to see Ricky giving her a happy face and she started to freak out as well.

The Ash, Daisy, Pikachu, and Froakie couldn't help but laugh at the irony as the two girls freaked out, running from their respective fears as they tried to show affection.

* * *

 **And that is Chapter 6 done. Ash caught his first two Pokémon and Leaf and Daisy caught their first Pokémon as well. Yes, I know the fear of mice and rats is a common cliché for girls but so is the fear of bugs and it is true in some cases, I mean my Mom is, and I figured it would be funny if Leaf had a similar fear to Misty's and give them some common ground. I apologize if these battles so far seem similar to the games, I'm doing my best. Next Time, Serena gets her first catch which was kind of foreshadowing in this chapter.**

 **Next Chapter: Time to Scatterbug**


	7. Time to Scatterbug

**Chapter 7 - Time to Scatterbug**

 **Hello again! Time for a new Kalos Chapter. I decided after having Ash, Daisy, and Leaf getting their first catch, I should include a chapter of Serena getting hers. So, let the journey continue.**

 **I do not own Pokémon!**

* * *

In the Kalos Region, Serena was now continuing her journey to get to the Lumiose City Airport so she could reunite with her friends back in Kanto. Right now she was on Route 4 after spending the night in Santalune City. She had already called to her mom to introduce her to Fennekin after calling Ash and apologized for not going back so they could meet in person. Grace told her it was alright and that she knew she wanted to get to Ash as soon as possible, which made Serena blush.

Before she took off, she had found an article online about how a certain raven-haired trainer from Pallet Town was able to defeat a group of thieves that were attacking the Pokémon Center in Viridian City. Serena couldn't believe that right after she told Ash to be more careful, he goes and gets into trouble again, but she figured that Ash really couldn't help the situation since it was the crooks who decided to attack that Pokémon Center, Ash just happened to be there when they did. She'll have to discuss that with him later.

She continued along the road of Route 4, her mind just focusing on getting to the airport and getting to Ash. Suddenly, she heard a car coming from right behind her. Serena turned around to see a shady looking man with a large rabbit-like Pokémon in a grey jeep speeding right towards her at an alarming speed. Serena quickly jumped out of the way before the guy could hit her. She looked back towards the car once he passed.

"What is wrong with that guy?" She asked herself in thought.

She then noticed a small cage on the ground next to her. She immediately assumed that it fell off the car when it passed by. She went over to it and saw that there was a tiny, black, worm-like Pokémon with yellow eyes and a white collar cowering in fear.

"Oh my gosh, are you okay," Serena said in worry.

Serena tried to open the cage with little success and noticed a padlock on the cage. She quickly reached for Fennekin's Pokéball and released her.

"Fennekin, use scratch on the lock," Serena told her.

The Fox Pokémon noticed the Pokémon in the cage and immediately understood. Her claws began to grow and glow slightly and she slashed at the padlock, cutting it open. Serena then opened the cage and slowly tried to hold the worm-like Pokémon, to which it just backed away in fear.

"It's okay little guy, I won't hurt you," Serena said softly.

The tiny Pokémon hesitated for a moment but allowed Serena to gently pick it up and take it out of the cage.

"You look hungry," said the honey blonde girl.

She took off her backpack and took out a tiny, round, woven basket. She opened it up to reveal a bunch of macarons of varying colors. She took out a yellow one and handed it to the tiny Pokémon. After giving it a quick sniff, the Pokémon began to much away at the macaron like it hadn't had anything to eat for days.

While the tiny worm continued to eat the macaron, Serena took out her Pokédex to scan it.

" _Scatterbug, the Scatterdust Pokémon. A Bug Type._ _When under attack from bird Pokémon, it spews a poisonous black powder that causes paralysis on contact."_

Serena put the device away and continued to watch Scatterbug eat the macaron. She couldn't help but wonder what kind of person would put a Pokémon in a cage. She suddenly heard a siren and turned to see one of Kalos' Officer Jenny's, which had a different uniform than the ones in Kanto being more bright blue and had her hair in a ponytail in the back instead of it being jagged, riding on a white police motorcycle with a blue and yellow dog-like Pokémon riding in the sidecar. As the policewoman approached Serena, she slowed to a stop and gave the young girl a stern look.

"What are you doing with that Scatterbug?" Jenny asked accusingly. "I bet you're one of Dolan's accomplices."

"No wait, I didn't steal this Scatterbug," Serena explained in a panic. "It fell off the car of someone who almost ran me over I noticed it was scared and tried to help it."

"So you're not working with Dolan?" Jenny asked. Serena nodded. "Sorry, sometimes I jump to conclusions too quickly."

"It's alright," said Serena. "Do you think you can help me get Scatterbug to a Pokémon Center?"

"Sure, hop on."

* * *

Serena and Officer Jenny were able to get Scatterbug to a nearby Pokémon Center where Nurse Joy was able to treat it properly. Unlike in Kanto, the Nurse Joys in the Kalos Region have their hair looped higher up on their head and have their bangs moved more to the side and her dress was just one piece and didn't include an apron. After a few moments of waiting, Nurse Joy and her Chancey partner came out with Scatterbug on a stretcher, looking much better.

"Scatterbug is feeling much better now," said Nurse Joy.

"Thank you, Nurse Joy," said Serena as she scooped Scatterbug up in her arms.

"I would like to apologize to you again, Serena," said Officer Jenny. "Manectric and I have been hunting down Dolan for months with little success."

The blue and yellow dog barked in response.

"Like I said, it's fine," Serena said sweetly. She decided to take out her Pokédex and scan Manectric.

" _Manectric, the Discharge Pokémon. An Electric Type._ _It discharges electricity from its mane. It creates a thundercloud overhead to drop lightning bolts."_

"So what does this 'Dolan' guy want with Scatterbug?" Serena asked as she put the device away.

"He's a Pokémon Poacher who capture Scatterbug from across Kalos," Officer Jenny explained. "He takes them to his hideout to evolve them into Vivion and then sells them to the highest bidder like their some trophies."

"That's terrible," said Serena.

"So far I haven't found any leads as to where his hideout might be."

"If I may say something," Nurse Joy interjected. "I found this clipped to Scatterbug's collar."

She showed Officer Jenny and Serena a small electronic device with a flashing red light.

"What is it?" Serena asked.

"It's a tracking Device," said Officer Jenny. "Dolan must have put them on all of his captures in case he loses one."

"Does that mean he's coming here?" Serena asked in worry.

"No it doesn't," said the policewoman as she held the device in front of Manectric.

The Discharge Pokémon sent a small electric shock towards the device, shorting it out.

"There, now the tracking device is disabled. Dolan won't be able to come find us."

"Thank goodness," Serena sighed in relief.

"Maybe I can get this back to the station to try and trace the signal back to Dolan's hideout," Jenny pondered out loud.

Suddenly, Scatterbug felt restless in Serena's arms.

Noticing the Pokémon's distress, Serena looked down at Scatterbug and said, "What's wrong Scatterbug?"

Scatterbug jumped out of Serena's hands and started running in circles.

"What's it doing?" Serena asked.

Scatterbug then started to glow and change shape. It grew bigger in size and seemed to stand taller. When the light dispersed, Scatterbug's head was larger and its collar was more like a coat as it covered its entire body.

"It evolved," Jenny said in amazement.

Serena took out her Pokédex and scanned Scatterbug's new form.

" _Spewpa, the Scatterdust Pokémon and the evolved form of Scatterbug. A Bug Type. It lives hidden within thicket shadows. When predators attack, it quickly bristles the fur covering its body in an effort to threaten them."_

Serena got down on her knees and smiled at the newly evolved Pokémon.

"Congratulations Spewpa," she said with a smile.

Spewpa gave a happy surprise in response. Suddenly, an idea clicked in Serena's brain.

"Hey, Officer Jenny," she said. "Do you or anyone on the force have a Pokémon that's as big as Spewpa?"

"Well, I know this one guy who has an Espurr. Why?" the policewoman asked.

"Do you think your tech department might be able to make us track the tracking device as well?"

"Sure, why?"

"Maybe we can dress up Espurr as a Spewpa and put the tracking device on him."

"So Dolan will pick it up and we can follow him back to his hideout," said Officer Jenny, realizing Serena's plan. "Great idea. Except, I can't sew."

"Neither can I," said Nurse Joy.

"I can do it," said Serena, taking a sewing kit out of her backpack. "I'm really into fashion and sometimes make my own clothes. Making a Spewpa costume for an Espurr will be no problem."

Serena knew that voluntarily helping the Police catch a criminal was something Ash was more likely to do that she was, but Ash had left a pretty big impact on her life.

"Great, I'll go down to the station and get everything ready," said Officer Jenny. "Do you mind staying here with Spewpa until I get back?"

"Sure," Serena answered.

Officer Jenny nodded and she and Manectric left the Pokémon Center and sped off on her bike.

* * *

It has been about an hour since Officer Jenny left and Serena was waiting patiently in the Pokémon Center Cafeteria and simply watched Spewpa and Fennekin play with each other. Serena wished she could have gone with Officer Jenny so she could get started on the Spewpa costume right away, but she was just really bored. She looked at the time on her Holo Caster and decided it would be nice to get an update on Ash's journey. So she dialed Ash's number and waited for a few seconds before a hologram of him appeared.

"Hey Serena," said the hologram of her secret crush.

"Hey Ash, how's it going?" Serena asked.

"Well… we are in Viridian Forest right now and we just finished lunch."

"Oh, that's great! I'm actually at a Pokémon Center on Route 4, so I'll be there soon."

"Great," Ash said excitedly.

"Oh, talking to your girlfriend?" a female voice that Serena didn't recognize shouted.

She wasn't sure if Ash retorted or not, she was embarrassed that someone had called her Ash's girlfriend that her cheeks were practically glowing, she quickly covered them up with her hair, hoping Ash wouldn't notice.

"A-Ash, who was that?" the honey-blonde asked.

"That was Misty, the girl I BORROWED THE BIKE FROM," Ash shouted that last part towards the said individual. "She claims that I owe her for wrecking her bike, so she's going to be on my tail until I pay her back and no matter what I do, she won't leave me alone."

"So it won't be just the two of us anymore?" Serena asked. Ash nodded. This upset Serena, she was hoping that she and Ash would travel alone, just the two of them, and then she could muster up the courage to tell him how she feels and maybe they could be more than friends, but with a third party member, let alone another girl, that eliminated that fantasy. Sure they would have their Pokémon, but that was a different matter entirely.

"Well I guess it can't be helped," she sighed. Then she recalled the article she read this morning.

"Oh and Ash, I read what happened at the Pokémon Center at Viridian City." Ash gulped, indicating that wasn't something he wanted her to know about...

"I'm fine Serena, I was able to send those goons packing," said the raven-haired trainer. "Besides, I wasn't going to just stand by and do nothing."

"I know, that's just the kind of person you are," said Serena. "Though, I don't think I'm in a position to criticize you on that right now."

"What do you mean?" Suddenly, Spewpa jumped up on Serena's shoulder, startling the honey-blonde.

"What is that?" Ash asked.

"It's a Spewpa, I found it as a Scatterbug that came off a poacher's truck as it zoomed right past me."

"Are you okay," Ash asked in concern.

"I'm fine, but I am going to help Officer Jenny help catch the poacher," said Serena.

"Really, but won't you…" he wasn't able to finish his sentence as a loud scream caught his attention.

"Sorry Serena, I'll talk to you later," said Ash.

Before Serena could say anything else, Ash had already hung up. She put down the Holo Caster and let out a sigh as she thought about that "Misty" girl Ash mentioned. She wanted to hate for ruining her perfect romantic journey with her crush, but that just wasn't the kind of person Serena was. Serena could understand that the girl wanted to be paid back, but does she really have to tag along just to make sure he does?

Spewpa seemed to notice the honey blonde girl's distress and began nuzzling her affectionately. Soon enough, Fennekin noticed too and hopped up into Serena's lap and also began to show her trainer some affection. Serena smiled as she put Spewpa on the table.

"Don't worry you two, I'm fine," said Serena.

"I'm back," said Officer Jenny as she came through the Pokémon Center's doors.

"Did you bring Espurr?" Serena asked.

"Yep, he's right here." Officer gestured towards her feet where a small Pokémon with grey fur and beady, purple eyes was standing.

"Nice to meet you Espurr," said Serena as she took out her Pokédex.

" _Espurr, the Restraint Pokémon. A Psychic Type. The organ that emits its intense psychic powers is sheltered by its ears to keep power from leaking out."_

"Alright Espurr, are you ready to help catch Dolan?" Officer Jenny asked the Psychic Pokémon.

Espurr gave a small meow in response.

"Alright, let me get your measurements and we can get started," said Serena.

* * *

In a few short minutes, Espurr was now wearing a complete Spewpa costume in a field next to the road. Standing next to the real Spewpa, the two looked almost identical except for the eyes.

"Good job Serena," Jenny praised. "I can hardly tell the difference."

Fennekin and Manectric also made cries in amazement.

"Thanks," said Serena, blushing at all the praise.

"Now, to set the trap," said Officer Jenny as she took out the tracking device and a small tablet. "This tablet will track Espurr within 20 yards, so we'll have to keep our distance so we don't get spotted."

Jenny put the tracking device on Espurr's costume and turned it on.

"Alright, now get in the cage and wait for my signal."

Espurr nodded and walked into the cage. Jenny then closed the cage and locked it. Jenny and Serena then went to a nearby bush with Fennekin, Spewpa, and Manectric and hid behind it and waited.

After about thirty minutes, Dolan's car pulled up next to the cage. Serena noticed the rabbit-like Pokémon was still sitting on the passenger side of the car and decided to do a quick scan.

" _Diggersby, the Digging Pokémon. A Normal/Ground Type._ _With their powerful ears, they can heft boulders of a ton or more with ease. They can be a big help at construction sites."_

Dolan had gotten out of the car and towards the cage with "Spewpa" inside.

"Well, well, well, I was wondering where you disappeared to," he said, picking up the cage. "And you've evolved into a Spewpa, even better. You'll evolve into a huge and profitable Vivillon in no time."

Dolan put the cage in the back of his car and sped off back where he came from.

"Alright, he took the bait," whispered Officer Jenny. "Let's get ready to follow."

Serena nodded and they all went over to Jenny's bike and waited a few seconds before following the signal. They followed Dolan into the forest and up a cliffside road. Jenny parked the bike once the path started to narrow and they made the rest of the way on foot. They hid behind a large rock and found a warehouse that was filled with Spewpa in cages and Dolan's car parked right outside.

"Alright, we got him," said Officer Jenny. "You wait here, Serena, it could be dangerous."

Serena nodded as Officer Jenny and Manectric quietly made their way towards the building. Anxious to get its friends back, Spewpa jumped off Serena's shoulders and followed Officer Jenny.

"Spewpa, wait," Serena whispered.

But it was already too late, as Spewpa joined Manectric at the door. Jenny noticed this but didn't say anything and decided to move in.

"Alright Dolan, you're under arrest," she shouted as she and Manectric jumped in front of the door.

She looked around only to find no sign of Dolan anywhere.

"Looking for me?" said a voice.

Officer Jenny turned around to see Dolan and Diggersby holding Serena, Fennekin, and Espurr hostage.

"Thought you could get away with fooling me with a fake Spewpa huh?" said Dolan.

Jenny got ready to charge at Dolan but he then pulled out a gun and pointed it at Serena's head.

"Not so fast, one more step and the girl gets it."

Jenny was really mad, but she stood down and put her hands up in surrender.

"Now that's a good cop," Dolan laughed. "Now, have that Spewpa come over quietly and I'll let her go."

Spewpa didn't even hesitate and began making its way towards Dolan.

"Now that's a good Spewpa," Dolan laughed.

As soon as Spewpa got close, it shot out webbing from its mouth and wrapped it around Dolan's gun.

"What the" Dolan asked in shock.

Serena took the opportunity and stomped down hard on Dolan's leg. Dolan screamed in pain and Serena was able to escape from his grip and ran over to Officer Jenny. Spewpa then shot webbing at Diggersby's ears and began wrapping them tightly, making the Digging Pokémon release Fennekin and Espurr. Spewpa continued to wrap Diggersby up with the webbing until it was tied up completely and ran back over to Serena with Fennekin and Espurr.

"Come on Diggersby, get out of that thing," Dolan yelled.

The Normal/Ground Type compiled and broke the webbing with ease.

"Alright, now go grab that Spewpa."

Spewpa suddenly started to run around in circles.

"Hey, isn't that like what happened before?" Serena asked.

"Yeah," said Officer Jenny. "Which means…"

Before Jenny could finish her sentence, Spewpa began to glow and transform. Its body started to become sleeker and large wings started sprouting out. When the glowing stopped, Spewpa now looked like a butterfly with square, black eyes, a grey body, and wings that looked like you were watching the sunset on the ocean. Serena and Jenny stared at the new Pokémon in amazement before she took out her Pokédex to scan it.

" _Vivillon, the Scale Pokémon, and the evolved form of Spewpa. A Bug/Flying Type. Vivillon with many different patterns are found all over the world. These patterns are affected by the climate of their habitat."_

"Alright, Spewpa evolved," Serena cheered.

"And it has the rare Ocean Pattern," Dolan added. "Having a Vivillon like that will make me very rich."

"You're not selling it, period," Serena shouted.

"Oh, be quiet you little brat," said Dolan. "Diggersby, use Mudshot to shut them up."

Diggersby compiled by shooting mud at Serena and Officer Jenny. Both of them got ready for the hit, but Vivillon got in the way and created a large, green barrier that blocked the mud.

"Vivillon used Protect to save us," said the policewoman.

Vivillon then flew closer to Diggersby and started blowing yellow spores in its direction. As Diggersby started to breathe in the spores, it started to lose feeling in every part of its body, making it paralyzed.

"Fennekin, use Ember," said Serena.

The Fox Pokémon obeyed and shot tiny bits of fire at the large rabbit, causing it to be knocked back.

"No, Diggersby!"

Before Dolan could make another move, Officer Jenny took out a lasso and threw it around his wrist.

"Dolan, you're under arrest," said Jenny.

"I'm not doing squat," Dolan yelled.

Vivillon then flew over Dolan and spread some green powder over him.

"Huh, I'm starting to feel kinda sleepy," the poacher yawned as he slowly drifted to sleep.

"Alright, you're coming with me," said Officer Jenny. "Serena, do you mind letting the rest of the Spewpa out while I call for a squad car?"

"Sure," said Serena.

Serena went inside the warehouse and opened up all the cages with some help from Fennekin.

"Come on, your free to go," said the honey blonde.

All the Spewpa got out of their cages and went towards the cliffside. Serena soon followed after and watched them all circle about restlessly and evolve into beautiful Vivion. Serena smiled happily as she watches the newly evolved Vivillon fly away into the sky. She then turned towards the Vivillon that she had helped.

"Well Vivillon, I guess you'll be joining your friends now," she said sadly.

Vivillon nodded and began to happily fly around Serena and Fennekin, making the both of them really confused.

"It seems Vivillon wants to go with you," said Officer Jenny.

"Is that really okay?" Serena asked.

"If that's what it wants, then I have no reason to complain."

Serena turned back to Vivillon and asked, "Is that true Vivillon?"

The Scale Pokémon gave a happy cry as it flew all around Serena's head.

"Okay, okay, you can come," Serena laughed as she took out a Pokéball.

Vivillon flew closer to the red and white sphere and tapped the button with its head, allowing it to be absorbed into the Pokéball. It wiggled once, twice, three times before making a clicking sound, indicating Vivillon was caught.

"Alright, we just got our first Pokémon, Fennekin," said Serena.

Her starter Pokémon gave a happy cry in response. Serena took out her Pokédex in order to learn more about their new friend.

" _This Vivillon is male and knows Gust, Stun Spore, Protect, and Sleep Powder."_

"Well, the squad car can take Dolan to jail, do you need a ride anywhere?" Officer Jenny asked.

"Actually, I do need to get to the Lumiose City Airport, I have a flight to Kanto in a few hours."

"Sure, I'll just return Manectric and you can ride in the sidecar."

* * *

Officer Jenny was now rushing along Route 4 with Serena in the sidecar, taking her to the Lumiose Airport. As Serena was watching the scenery fly right by, she noticed something deep in the woods. It looked like a tree, but it seemed to have legs and a very majestic light to it.

"Hey, you alright," said Officer Jenny, catching Serena's attention.

She quickly turned back to the forest to see that whatever it was she saw disappear.

"Yeah, just admiring the scenery."

* * *

 **And Chapter 7 is done and boy, am I being evil to Misty, giving three trainers bug type Pokémon. So yeah, I bumped this fic up to a T because the gun and I just want to be safe. There will be no swear words yet. And did you honestly think I wasn't going to have Serena see her own Legendary Pokémon at the start of her journey? Well, I just proved you wrong. As for what Serena will do in Kanto, I think for now I will have her learn some breeding and cooking skills from Brock so she'll have those skills handy in later arcs; I'm not sure if she'll do anything else, though. I'm sure I'll cross that bridge when I come to it. Don't be afraid to leave some suggestions in reviews.**

 **Next Chapter: Showdown in Pewter City**


	8. Notice

Hello Everyone, sorry I haven't uploaded in a while. I have been very busy with college lately. I will update my stories as soon as I get the time. Please do be patient.

DeGraphics Literature


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